he coastal area of Cap-Haïtien called Nan Bannann often experiences flooding and is normally strewn with trash. (GSR/Chris Herlinger)
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This month, and probably for every October for the rest of her life, Haitian Sr. Evelyn Moliney will remember a time she would rather forget.
A year ago, Hurricane Matthew bore down on southwestern Haiti, threatening a large swath of coastal area, including the city and surrounding areas of Jérémie, the capital city of the department, or province, of Grand'Anse.
Moliney was working in the town of Marfranc, about 15 miles southwest of Jérémie, with four fellow sisters of the Congregation of the Little Sisters of St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus. The sisters were helping care for 40 residents of a senior citizens home run by the Haitian congregation.
The sisters debated whether they and the residents should stay or evacuate — a common question when Haiti is threatened, as it often is, by a hurricane, and people try to gauge the storm's strength. The poorest country in the Western Hemisphere does not have good infrastructure and lacks an adequate system of public shelters.
The sisters thought the seniors' residence could withstand the torrential rains and winds.
It didn't.
