Dr. Kit Miyamoto's Field Journals
  • Home
  • Kit’s Journals
    • China
    • Ecuador
    • Haiti
    • Italy
    • Japan
    • Nepal
    • Philippines
    • Thailand
    • Guest Journals
  • About Miyamoto
    • Miyamoto International
    • Miyamoto Relief

Thirty Months in Haiti, Part 1

November 29, 2012November 13, 2018,
  • Prev
  • Next
This post is part of a series called Miyamoto in Haiti
Show More Posts
  • The 2010 Haiti Earthquake, Part 1
  • The 2010 Haiti Earthquake, Part 2
  • Miyamoto in Haiti: The Presidential Palace, A Fractured Haitian Icon
  • Miyamoto in Haiti: Damage Assessment of the Japanese Embassy
  • Miyamoto in Haiti: The Well-Oiled Relief Machine Rolling Through Haiti
  • Miyamoto in Haiti: Inside a Heavily Damaged Building
  • Miyamoto in Haiti: Visiting The Citadel
  • Thirty Months in Haiti, Part 1
  • Thirty Months in Haiti, Part 2
  • Thirty Months in Haiti, Part 3
  • Miyamoto in Haiti: A Morning and Afternoon of Hopeful Rebuilding
  • Miyamoto in Haiti: School Rebuilding and Construction Continues
  • Trente mois en Haïti, 1eme partie
  • Trente mois en Haïti, 2eme partie
  • Trente mois en Haïti, 3eme partie
  • Miyamoto in Haiti: Visiting a Remote School Construction Site Near Cap-Haïtien
  • Miyamoto in Haiti: Self-Sustaining Relief
  • Miyamoto in Haiti: Love it or Hate it? Love it!
  • Miyamoto in Haiti: Lycee de Cite Soleil Rehabilitation Project
  • Miyamoto in Haiti: The Hopeful Road to Recovery

IMG_0447-1I just finished giving a speech at the Kinam Hotel in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The applause afterward left me with a good, warm feeling. I’d spoken to more than 100 attendees, including MTPTC (the Haitian Public Works Ministry) engineers, ministry directors, nongovernmental organization (NGO) partners and the media. This event was to celebrate the achievements of the MTPTC engineers since the 2010 earthquake.

I have had probably more than 50 speaking engagements each year for the last several years, for many different types of audiences, and giving speeches has become somewhat routine. Sometimes it feels like I am just going through the motions—but not this time. It was a great audience, and my emotions were high. I had worked closely with these people for the past 30 months. They were my colleagues, friends and students. These young Haitian engineers had worked hard to save their country after an unprecedented disaster. Although they had been totally unprepared, Haitians had stepped up and proved the world wrong about their abilities.

I had met these 40 engineers 30 months ago in a temporary meeting shack for MTPTC. The official ministry building had been lost after the earthquake. It was March 2010. We were being funded by UNOPS and the World Bank to develop and execute a program to assess the overall structural damage caused by a devastating magnitude 7 earthquake.

The Haiti earthquake killed an estimated 300,000 people and rendered more than 1.2 million homeless. The mandate was simple: Figure out what had happened and create a reconstruction strategy. We used the well-established Applied Technology Council ATC-20 as a baseline to create an automated structural damage assessment tool. This assessment tool used a GPS to record data and download information quickly every day, so the situation could be seen in real time. This was the first time in history that such a high-tech and massive assessment program had been developed. We selected 260 top young engineers from MTPTC’s list of recent college graduates. First, I trained the trainers and managers. Then they trained the rest of the group per international standards in the classroom.

But the real training started in the field. We divided 260 engineers into 17 divisions. Each division was headed by a senior MTPTC engineer and deployed to the field in a van, with preprogrammed personal digital assistants (PDAs) in hand. A dozen Miyamoto engineers were spread out among the groups to provide on-site training and quality control. Eventually, the Pan American Development Foundation (PADF) and USAID OFDA (Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance) also became partners in the project. Dan O’Neil of PADF became one of the biggest supporters and proponents of the reconstruction program.

During the first 12 months, we assessed 430,000 structures. We covered all the affected areas, from the densely populated concrete jungle of Port-au-Prince to the green fields of Léogâne. It was incredible. I lost 20 pounds just climbing the steep urban hills and damaged buildings.

The engineers on the team proved the negative things that had been said about Haitians entirely unfounded. Misconceptions about Haitians included that they were lazy, helpless, and some people had even told me that I would lose all the engineers during the World Cup or on rainy days. Guess what? These sentiments were completely wrong. These engineers are the most hardworking and passionate people with whom I have ever worked. They even showed up for work on Christmas Day, and insisted on working seven days a week. Only hurricanes and political demonstrations during elections stopped them.

Our efforts paid off. Our MTPTC engineers were the first official personnel to arrive at collapsed buildings to assess damage.

Kit Miyamoto
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Google Plus
  • Pinterest

Post navigation

   Miyamoto in Haiti: Visiting The Citadel
Thirty Months in Haiti, Part 2   

You may also like

Miyamoto in Haiti: Lycee de Cite Soleil Rehabilitation Project

Continue Reading

Miyamoto in Haiti: Love it or Hate it? Love it!

Continue Reading

ABOUT

Kit MiyamotoKit Miyamoto

As CEO of the structural engineering company Miyamoto International, Kit is dedicated to making the world a better place. In Kit's words: our responsibility as engineers is to make buildings safer by sharing what we know around the world. Join his journey to make the world a better, safer place.

Archives

  • August 2017
  • April 2016
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • August 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • September 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • April 2013
  • February 2013
  • November 2012
  • March 2011
  • March 2010
  • January 2010
  • May 2008

miyamoto_international

Over 80 public and private sector representatives Over 80 public and private sector representatives from #Jakarta, Indonesia came together to discuss “Global Experiences in Earthquake Planning & Preparedness” as a part of @USAIDSavesLives's USAID ADVANCE Indonesia Program. Watch the highlight video here: http://ow.ly/ftEN50DN1ku.📸: Alejandro Mark II#indonesia #DRR
Today we launched the PREPARE Guatemala progam aloToday we launched the PREPARE Guatemala progam alongside @USAIDSaveslives and @PCIglobalguatemala. Guatemala is the newest country in the PREPARE Program family, through which we work to evaluate and reduce seismic vulnerability throughout Latin America & the Caribbean. Thanks to everyone who logged in!#guatemala #earthquake
@habitatforhumanity's Terwilliger Center for Innov@habitatforhumanity's Terwilliger Center for Innovation in Shelter and Miyamoto announced a new partnership to combine housing, finance, and engineering expertise to create more resilient housing for low-income households. Read more at miyamotointernational.com/news
Last week we helped open the first of five drive-tLast week we helped open the first of five drive-thru COVID clinics for UC Davis Health, alongside Rudolph and Sletten, Inc., RMW Architecture & Interiors, Schetter Electric, Inc., and more. In a time when these sites are so critical, we're proud to work with such a dynamic team that delivered the first clinic ahead of schedule and with the highest quality.📸: Rudolph and Sletten
Register now for #UR2020 Understanding Risk GlobalRegister now for #UR2020 Understanding Risk Global Forum. Our session "Earthquake Disaster Preparedness through Public Engagement" is Dec 1st at 7pm PST. Don't forget to put it in your calendar. ⛈🔥🌋🌀🌊 ☣ Register today bit.ly/35pb6HN
Our friends at @wildphilanthropy hire and support Our friends at @wildphilanthropy hire and support families in #Ethiopia's Omo Valley with their locally-led tours. The #pandemic has brought tourism to a complete halt and they are in need of funds to continue supporting staff. Please consider donating by heading to the Emergency Relief fundrazr on their website.
Load More...Follow on Instagram

© Miyamoto International. All Rights Reserved.