Photo: Dubai Media Office
Two years ago, HRH Princess Haya bint Hussein personally journeyed to Haiti, overseeing the delivery of emergency supplies after the Caribbean nation was devastated by a tropical cyclone. And now, the royal has again sent a message of support to the country, which has been rocked by a large earthquake this week. The 5.9 jolt has left at least 15 people dead, and hundreds more injured, according to the BBC, just eight years after hundreds of thousands Haitians lost their lives in a huge earthquake in 2010.
After news of the latest quake was announced, Princess Haya chaired a meeting of Dubai’s International Humanitarian City. “Following yesterday’s earthquake in Haiti, the IHC board met this morning to review the emergency preparedness,” the royal, chair of IHC’s board of directors and wife of HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, revealed on Instagram. The meeting also featured an “update about the on-going human tragedies in Bangladesh and Indonesia”, HRH added. “Our hearts go out to all affected by these disasters. The IHC stands ready to mobilize and support,” said Princess Haya.
The meeting comes just weeks after IHC sent a much-needed shipment of relief supplies to the Indonesian island of Lombok, which has been struck by a series of high-magnitude quakes and aftershocks since August. “The deadly natural disaster has claimed the lives of at least 550 people, left nearly 400,000 people displaced, and caused damage and destruction to over 80,000 homes,” IHC tweeted as it revealed details of its airlift on its social media accounts. The philanthropic initiative transported 91 metric tons of shelter toolkits, tarpaulins, and blankets to the island, which were provided by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.
It is not the first aid shipment that IHC has organized in recent months – together with the support of HH Sheikh Mohammed, multiple relief planes have been dispatched to Bangladesh this year. Carrying shelter supplies and other basic items, the shipments were destined to help Rohingya Muslims living in refugee camps after fleeing persecution in their native Myanmar.
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