On the 9th of May HBS was attacked by the local gangs in Limbé, threatening the staff and patients alike causing the closure of the hospital. Threatening graffiti was spray painted on the walls and barricades of burning tires were erected at the gates. The patients and staff, fearing for their lives took all of their belongings and fled the hospital. People saw a patient running down the road with an IV in one arm and holding the bag of serum under the other arm. Paul Hodges, traveled to Haiti with his 18 year old daughter, Zuleika, to meet with government and United Nations officials to convince them that the hospital needed to reopen and for them to provide protection. Finally on the 13th of June, everything came together for the hospital to reopen. Electricity and water were reestablished within hours for which the townspeople were extremely grateful. Thanks to the Haitian police and the UN who now fully cooperate to provide needed security for the hospital. The next day most of the staff came back to work as the patients started overcoming their fears and headed back to the hospital for much needed care.

For many years the hospital has provided water for the town of Limbé with 5 public water fountains and over 700 homes and schools receiving water. During this difficult period of time for HBS, being shut down, we were not able to supply the generators with diesel fuel that provide the electricity to pump the water. Not only the sick people and the diabetics were suffering greatly but also the Haitian people in Limbé who did not have access to the potable water. They were using contaminated water from shallow wells and the Limbé river. Potable water is something that we have constant access to without having to think about it. Just think what it would do to our lives if we would not have access to water. As you can imagine everybody was very happy to have the hospital reopen and they could have running water in the public fountains and in their homes.

Kai Mira Children

Upon the first day of arriving at the hospital I took it upon myself to go visit the handicapped orphanage. I wasn’t expecting the children to look in the greatest shape considering the hospital had been closed for a month leaving only a few caretakers to look over them during that period. But then again I hadn’t expected to have seen what I saw either. They looked as if they had just been left in their cribs for who knows how long. Some children were calling for their parents who have long abandoned them. Once the hospital reopened, and there was electricity, water, food and medicines, things began to look up in the orphanage.

Zuleika Hodges

PS: My grandmother, Joanna Hodges, is now at HBS in Haiti taking over playing with the children everyday. I hear they really love her with her candy and balloons.

HBS Reopens

Everyone is happy that the hospital is back functioning and continuing its goal of serving the poor and more impoverished people by providing them with hope, medical care and potable water that they so badly need in their daily lives.

This is the first time since 1958 when William Hodges, MD, traveled with his family to Haiti that all the hospital services have been completely shut down. Though we have had trouble before, especially when there is a government change, we have always managed to keep our emergency services operational. Our re-start up costs have been staggering with a good number of outstanding bills for medicine and medical supplies and international phone calls. Due to lack of electricity we lost all our refrigerated medicines and lab tests.

Please send your badly needed donations to:

HBS Foundation, Inc.
PO Box 1290
Lake Worth, FL 33460