Haiti Essay Outline

Thesis: Given that Haiti has a history with natural disasters, they should have been better prepared for the 2010 Earthquake by having stronger infrastructure, better crises management, and more governmental honesty.

A)   The lack of a strong infrastructure in the cities of Haiti caused more damage than there should have been.

                        i.         No reinforcing of construction plans

                       ii.         Lack of building codes

                     iii.         Damage caused to infrastructure, delayed aid.

                     iv.         Rubble and debris caused by collapsed constructions caused roads to constantly be filled with people seeking open space, restricting movement.

                       v.         Stronger infrastructure makes a difference in amount of damage, ex: Chile.

B)   In a developing country governmental honesty is essential for future success but Haiti’s government did not have that.

                        i.         Corruption causes the people to loose trust in their government.

                       ii.         Dishonesty causes economic decline/ problems.

                     iii.         Mal-management of dilemmas/ issues leads to problems such as Haiti having no controlling/ strong government during disaster.

                     iv.         Disorganized hierarchical structure of authority and decision-making disables ability to advance and improve.

                       v.         Political Figures not doing their job leads to gaps in the governing system. i.e. Rene Preval

C)   Haiti should have had a customized crisis management plan, considering their vast experience.

                        i.         Haiti followed the basic Crisis Management Plan that is traditionally used as an outline for creating customized plans.

                       ii.         Formal disaster planning tends to 1. Fail to be implemented or 2. Help with the occurring disaster.

                     iii.         Inaccurate record keeping i.e. count of injured, missing, and dead makes it hard for organizations to help to their full extent.

                     iv.         Rescue and recovery plans of individual relief agencies, tend to conflict with the government’s.

                       v.         NGO’s follow their own aid plans, causing varying methods, which result in confusion of the people.

                     vi.         Lack of a good crises management plan causes ground organizations struggle when helping survivors.

History Sources: Part 3...even more

-(SECONDARY - ANALITICAL ARTICLE)

Piotrowski, Chris. "Earthquake in Haiti: A Failure in Crisis Management?" Organization Development Journal 28, no. 1 (2010): 107-112. http://search.proquest.com/docview/197985782/13314E9C6779D86269/1?accountid=3360

-(PRIMARY- Article)

Suozzi, Marguerite. "Haiti: Damage to Infrastructure Delays Aid Deliveries." Global Information Network, Jan 15, 2010. http://search.proquest.com/docview/457549060?accountid=3360.

-(PRIMARY- Report)

Margesson, R., Taft-Morales, M. "Haiti Earthquake: Crisis and Response" Congressional Research Service, Jan 15, 2010: 2-25

http://assets.opencrs.com/rpts/R41023_20100115.pdf

-(SECONDARY- Analitical)

Bradt, G. "Haiti and Crisis Management" Prime-Genesis (Online), Jan 15, 2010. 

http://www.primegenesis.com/blog/527/haiti-and-crisis-management/  

-(PRIMARY- Article)

Lobe, J. "Haiti: U.S. Acts Quickly on Debt Relief Ahead of Preval Visit." Global Information Network, Mar 09, 2010. http://search.proquest.com/docview/457549296?accountid=3360

“Haiti.” The New York Times, October 26, 2011. http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/haiti/index.html (accessed November, 2011)

Romero, Simon, and Marc Lacey. "Fierce Quake Devastates Haitian Capital." The New York Times. (2010). http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/13/world/americas/13haiti.html


"Haiti earthquake: history of natural disasters to hit the country." The Telegraph. (Jan 13, 2010). http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/centralamericaandthecaribbean/haiti/6978919/Haiti-earthquake-history-of-natural-disasters-to-hit-the-country.html



"Timeline of Haiti's natural disasters." ChinaDaily. (2010). (accessed November 2011). http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2010-01/14/content_9316563.htm

History Sources: Part 2

- (SECONDARY ARTCLE)

Rozario, Kevin. "Rising from the Ruins; Natural Disasters have been Engines of Development and Economic Growth Throughout History. Kevin Rozario on the Lessons of Past Catastrophes, and Why Haiti might be Different." Wall Street Journal (Online), Jan 16, 2010. http://search.proquest.com/docview/237935861?accountid=3360.

__Description__

- (PRIMARY ARTICLE) “earthquake that hit Haiti on Tuesday afternoon destroyed about 70 percent of the buildings in the 15 districts of the country's capital city Port-au-Prince,”

(Haiti earthquakes and lives destroyed), http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20100115/haitis-earthquake-destroyed-70-buildings-report.htm

-(PRIMARY PHOTOGRAPH) The effects and destruction caused by the earthquake

by Shaul Schwarz and Timothy Fadek,

http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1954087_2043675,00.html

-PRIMARY TRADE JOURNAL:

"HAITI: After Shock." The Engineer no. 00137758 (Feb 08, 2010): 20-n/a. http://search.proquest.com/docview/214074539?accountid=3360.

-SECONDARY ARTICLES:

"Haiti Tragedy is Avoidable with Enforceable Building Codes." Targeted News Service, Jan 13, 2011. http://search.proquest.com/docview/840337879?accountid=3360.

History Sources: Part 1

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PRIMARY ARTICLE-

Boyd, Herb. "Haiti Rebounds." New York Amsterdam News,2010. http://search.proquest.com/docview/390443329?accountid=3360.

_____________Description_____________

Boyd, "Haiti Rebounds"

4: “Given the number of buildings destroyed, there were thousands of businesses and homes that did not meet specifications. Fortunately, thousands of lives were spared because people weren't at home and asleep when the earthquake rattled the land at 4:53 p.m. on January 12.” It then continues to speak about the importance good construction is and how much of an effect it will have in the economy if after every earthquake, they don’t have to make programs to reconstruct again.

Keyword:(((haiti) AND (Earthquake OR natural disasters)) AND (Destroyed OR destruction)) AND ((building codes OR construction laws))


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SECONDARY NEWSPAPER-

Edwards, Steven. "Building Codes, Quake's Huge Range Help Chile Fare Better than Haiti." The Gazette, Feb 28, 2010. http://search.proquest.com/docview/434907437?accountid=3360.

_____________Description_____________

Edwards, "Quake's Huge Range Help Chile Fare Better than Haiti."

A.3: It compares the more recent Chilean earthquake to Haiti’s. It proceeds to talk about the magnitude of both earthquakes and the factuality involved with exact position of the quakes.

“While the known death toll in yesterday's quake will almost certainly rise as the extent of the disaster unfolds, it may not exceed a few hundred, compared with about 200,000 people who were killed in Haiti.”

Keyword:(((haiti) AND (Earthquake OR natural disasters)) AND (Destroyed OR destruction)) AND ((building codes OR construction laws))

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PRIMARY RADIO BROADCAST-

Robles, Frances, Fred Tasker, and Jacqueline Charles. "Haiti Plans Stricter Building Codes, Says there's no Need to Move Capital." United States, Washington: McClatchy - Tribune Information Services, 2010. http://search.proquest.com/docview/456737708?accountid=3360

_____________Description_____________

Robles, Tasker, Charles, "Haiti Plans Stricter Building Codes, Says there's no Need to Move Capital."

Many topics concerning the Haiti earthquake are spoken in this radio broadcast. Many of the consequences of this earthquake are talked about including “The issue of moving the capital even a few miles north is a touchy political question in a city that was destroyed -- and rebuilt -- after a previous earthquake in the 1700s, and one that may not find its answers for years to come. Voltaire said there has been debate among Haitians about moving the capital to St. Marc, or the Central Plateau.” 

Keyword:(((haiti) AND (Earthquake OR natural disasters)) AND (Destroyed OR destruction)) AND ((building codes OR construction laws))

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SECONDARY NEWSPAPER-

Prasad, Chris. "Building Codes Save Lives." New Straits Times, Mar 26, 2010. http://search.proquest.com/docview/272087893?accountid=3360.

_____________Description_____________

Prasad, "Building Codes Save Lives."

13: “A little more than a month later on Feb 12, an even larger quake - 8.8 magnitude - hit Chile and affected six regions spanning north to south of the country. However, the total damage amounted to less than half a percent of Haiti's. ‘The difference,’ said architectural and construction publications from around the world, was strict building codes. Chile's codes and regulations are considered among the best for countries located in earthquake regions. Haiti, in contrast, doesn't have any.” It talked about Chile’s success in being less affected when it came earthquakes than Haiti.

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SECONDARY TRADE JOURNALS-

Markley, Rick. "Reflections on Haiti." Rock Products 113, no. 2 (2010): 2-2. http://search.proquest.com/docview/224905909?accountid=3360.

_____________Description_____________

Markley, "Reflections on Haiti."
2: "Haiti has a world of problems. It had a world of problems before being decimated by last month's earthquake. And when its survivors are fed and their medical conditions treated, and when its dead are accounted for and buried, Haiti still will have a world of problems." It talks about one of the most important profitable products that haiti produces and how the earthquake along with the government make it harder for it to continue, therefore affecting the economy.


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Bibliography card

         We have been learning about the proper ways to research and find sources through questions made to help us find certain information that we believe will help us in our research question/topic. My question in the previous post was... Given the fact that Haiti has experienced numerous Earthquakes in the past, why weren't all or at least most of their structures earthquake-proof? I would like to make a few adjustments to that question since I found I few things that pointed at disasters in general. Haiti's overall infrastructure lacks the strength to withstand most of the natural disasters with which it has been faced with and with which it is currently and predicted to face.
The following information is what would go in my bibliography card for my sources....


Primary- Newspaper Article
Delva, Joseph Guyler. "Collapse 'was like an earthquake'; Haitian school. At least 50 dead; many still trapped." The Gazette (Montreal) sec. News. (November 8, 2008), 19
ProQuest Advanced Search
Keywords:
Haiti AND earthquakes. Destruction OR destroyed. Before Jan. 1, 2010.
(this source helps me with information of what the consequences of not having a standardized building/construction code has been).


Secondary- Reflective Report
Van Belle, Douglas A. "New York Times and network TV news coverage of foreign disasters: The significance of the insignificant variables." Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly vol. 77, no.1 (Spring 2000), 50-70
ProQuest Advanced Search (or Scholarly Journals- Columbia Publications)
Keywords:
Haiti AND earthquakes. Standardized building. Before Jan. 1, 2010.
(This source helps me with information that demonstrates why standardized building/contruction would be useful to do in Haiti).


Primary- Newspaper
"EARTHQUAKES IS HAITI.: Houses Destroyed and Damaged at Gonaives, but No Loss of Life." Washington Post (Jan 16, 1908), 2 
ProQuest Advanced Search (or Historical Newpapers- Washinton Post)
Keywords:
Haiti AND earthquakes. Destruction OR destroyed. Before Jan. 1, 2010.
(This source provides me with information and an example of previous earthquakes that have also caused buildings and houses to be damaged or destroyed.)