Description

Recalling the weeks and months after the earthquake in Haiti, three young people tell their stories of tragedy, hope and survival.

Transcript

After the Earthquake in Haiti: Young Survivors Speak Out You're watching UNICEF Television. Miratson Guerrier: I was coming home from school and my family was cooking food. When the earthquake hit, I jumped down on the other side of the house; this is how I survived. My brother went under a wall and the wall fell and crashed his head and he died. This is not the first time I've been back to our destroyed home. My family comes back here to wash our clothes because we can't find enough water at the camp. It’s hard living in a tent because we have very little water to drink, food is in short supply and we have no place to take a bath. I feel miserable sometimes because where we are in the camp, when it rains during the night, we have to climb up on something to stay dry because when it rains, the ground turns to mud. What would make me happy in the future? All I want is a house where I can go to sleep, food to eat, water to drink, a place to go to school and a yard to play in. This is what would make me happy again. Miratson’s best friend Ricardo also moved into the camp after his home was destroyed. Ricardo: My name is Ricardo. I'm 12 years old and I live in Port-au-Prince. The day of the earthquake, I was outside my house and my mother was on the front porch, so we were injured but my seven year old brother was getting lessons at school and he was killed. What's the most difficult thing? I've lost a lot of friends, friends I used to visit and play at their houses. This is what's most difficult for me. When my mother leaves the camp to go work, sometimes she leaves food but not everyday, sometimes there's no food. She still has a job but they had to cut her paycheck in half. I usually eat once a day, sometimes I go to sleep without eating anything, sometimes I go to my godmother to ask for something to eat. When I grow up, I want to be president so I can help out the country. Rachel Lunique: My name is Rachel Lunique, I am 17 years old. My house was destroyed in the earthquake. I was the only one injured in my family. This is where I used to live. The day of the earthquake, I was trying to get out of the house and this is when the wall fell on my hand and trapped me. While I was trying to get out, I saw somebody who was coming in and then I went back inside the house and the wall fell on my hand, and I spent two days trapped in all of this. I was trapped there for two days. I started to pray and after I prayed I cried. Then I saw my neighbor who dug me out. They are seven of us living in this tent. It’s very difficult because when the rain comes, we get wet and when the sun is up, it is very hot inside. And it’s not easy for us to find food. One thing I can do is gather water everyday. When I get older I want to be a doctor so I can help sick people. I wish everybody could go back to school because without school, you can't do anything. For more information go to unicef.org, unite for children.