Hurricane Melissa ~ 28 Oct 2025

Update as of 22 Nov 2025

Thank you to a generous supporter in Nashville for funding the repair of our roofs and doors!  We still have some recovery to do! Please consider helping out if you can. ♥

Damage Assessment

If repair to hurricane damage is less than $3,000, I consider it a win. At the writing of this post, we're looking at $2,500 to repair the roofs and doors to the school building, kitchen, and latrines. These numbers include labor for the contractor that we use for this type of work. The contractor had a lot of damage to his home, too, so the wages he earns will help him recover, as well.

↓ This need has been met! Thank you to Nashville! ↓

Update as of 9 Nov 2025

A lot of water entered the school and damaged pretty much all the paper materials. We had just purchased a lot of materials to start the school year; but we had not used up our budget yet. I'm a little glad that I was slow to send the money because now we have a little to help in the recovery! I know a water cistern was blown down from a roof, but I'm not sure if we will need to replace it.

There is good news: the food cabinet did its job in protecting the food for school lunches. Thank you, Lord!

Because of a landslide under part of Samuel's house, he has damage to his home. He is working with the contractor for an estimate to shore up the slope under his house and possibly build a protective wall.

Since the storm, Samuel's family has been staying with some other village families in the Piton Partnership house that is right behind the school. It is the newest building (2017) and probably the strongest. It tends to be where they go to ride out storms. In this case, it continues to be home base for a few families. Because of a landslide under part of Samuel's house, he has damage to his home. He is working with the contractor for an estimate to shore up the slope under his house and possibly build a protective wall.

Petit Goâve (petty gwav) is the town at the bottom of the mountain where Piton families have other family and where they go to conduct business, socialize, go to church, etc. It was the hardest hit by Melissa. According to the UN, 25 of the 43 confirmed dead (5Nov25) were in Petit Goâve. The town had knee-deep water in the streets for a few days after the storm. Samuel visited several families that he knows to provide a little financial assistance and food.

What Happened

The southern peninsula of Haiti was put on hurricane watch on Oct 22. The system began affecting Piton's weather the next day. He sent a picture of the skies to tell me they were receiving some wind and rain. It wasn't particularly concerning. But the system meandered around and picked up strength. A week later, it hit Jamaica and was large enough to affect our half of Haiti.

Looking at the online animations and simplified graphics, it was easy to think Haiti was out of danger. It takes images like the ones below to appreciate how enormous a weather system is and just how far out the winds reach. The winds that touched Haiti never went above tropical storm strength.

Below are pictures sent by Samuel of the aftermath. He is beginning to send damage assessments and, of course, cost of repairs. Thankfully, no one in the villages were hurt, despite some homes being severely damaged or fully destroyed.

Back in 2018 we constructed a little headquarters of sorts right behind the school on school property, by permission of the village.  Samuel still calls it Kay ATI (ATI house).  It's been a blessing to have that house because it is more sturdy than the homes of the villagers. Those that are in particular danger from high winds are taken to the ATI house for safe shelter.

Click below to see full size photos.