Over the past two weeks Merlin’s Logistics Team has been working flat out to get supplies and medical equipment to Haiti, as part of one of our largest emergency responses.
So far Merlin has shipped over 17 tons of supplies to Haiti, including enough medicines and equipment for a population of 50,000 for three months, 70 air mattresses for makeshift hospital beds, 17 large medical tents, surgical gowns, operating tables, and a further $160,000 worth of donated surgical supplies.
“When an emergency strikes the Logistics team immediately springs into action. We have to source and supply absolutely everything an emergency response team might need and get it directly to the ground as quickly as possible,” says Alvaro Villanueva, Head of Logistics.
Each emergency is different and requires specific items depending on the type of response Merlin launches.
For Haiti this has ranged from specialist medical equipment such as a portable ultrasound and skin grafting kit, to generators and solar kit to be able to run equipment and maintain communications.
Villanueva explains:
“In scaling up our emergency response we have contacted numerous existing and new suppliers from all over the world. So the equipment sent to Haiti has been sourced from all over - the tents from Italy and Norway, the emergency health kits from the Netherlands, an X-ray machine from the UK and an ultrasound machine from Germany, for instance.”
All cargo has been sent out on flights donated by the travel company Thomas Cook, whose prompt offer of assistance has been invaluable in Merlin’s ability to respond to the earthquake so quickly and effectively.
It was sent to Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic and then transported overland into Haiti. This lesser flown route has been key to avoiding bottlenecks in getting aid in quickly.
In emergency contexts, where infrastructure and communications have been affected, where security can be an issue, and where the ability to carry out routine tasks on an individual basis can appear near impossible, preparing and supporting for a large scale response team on the ground can be a major challenge.
In Haiti Merlin’s first response team members arrived within days of the earthquake and faced an incredibly basic operating environment.
Andrew Parkes, Merlin’s Head Logistician in Haiti, says:
“To give you an idea, when I arrived on the ground and began preparing for our medical response team’s arrival, it took me four hours just to find a water source able to service the team’s working needs.”
Now, after five international flights, 17 tons of equipment, the cooperation of many existing and new partners, and the hard work of Merlin’s teams, both on the ground and in Head Office, we have set up a fully functioning surgical team who are hard at work saving lives and limbs in Port-au-Prince.
“Aid is getting through, is being effective, and is saving lives. Knowing that we have fully operational emergency response systems in place, we are now able to start looking towards the longer-term arrangements for supporting a basic health care program,” says Parkes.
Merlin will be staying in Haiti for at least three years to help rehabilitate and re-equip clinics, as well as train local health workers.
We would again like to take this opportunity to thank all the members of the public as well as the private companies who have donated money, goods and services in support of our emergency response.
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