Richard Dorrell
Richard's page
Fundraising for Disasters Emergency Committee
Story
On the 12th of January, 2010, at 21:53, an earthquake of magnitude 7.3 struck Haiti, with the epicentre approximately 15 kilometres southwest of Port-Au-Prince. I'm not going to regale you with an exhaustive list of the consequences- particularly as the extent of the damage incurred is not yet fully known- but the projected primary death toll, of 100000-500000 individuals, could account for anywhere between 5% and one-quarter of the population of the Port-Au-Prince metropolis.
The Haitian government and economy are woefully underequipped not only to deal with the immediate effects of the earthquake, but also to provide emergency accommodation, medical relief, food, clean water to the much, much greater number of survivors displaced as a result of loss of property and infrastructure. Haiti is by some distance the least socially and economically developed nation in the western hemisphere; as of 2009, 4 million Haitians do not have access to safe water, and only one in five have access to sanitation. Without wishing to be cliched, we have to do something. Us. Now. People's lives, people's futures, are in our hands, and this means you and me and everyone you know.
So, here's my small contribution. In ten days' time, I will be shaving my head. Completely, and believe me, that's a substantial amount of hair. I'd like you to donate whatever you can- all proceeds will go straight to the Disasters Emergency Committee (www.dec.org.uk) which, as a conglomerate of some of the most experienced UK charities in the field of disaster relief, has done incredible work in the last half century in more places than you can imagine. Go on- check out their website. In the meantime: it may be for the cause, or it may be because you are amused by the thought of me trying to conduct the rest of the winter with a modicum of personal dignity while completely hairless, but I'd like you to donate. Now. Do it!
The Haitian government and economy are woefully underequipped not only to deal with the immediate effects of the earthquake, but also to provide emergency accommodation, medical relief, food, clean water to the much, much greater number of survivors displaced as a result of loss of property and infrastructure. Haiti is by some distance the least socially and economically developed nation in the western hemisphere; as of 2009, 4 million Haitians do not have access to safe water, and only one in five have access to sanitation. Without wishing to be cliched, we have to do something. Us. Now. People's lives, people's futures, are in our hands, and this means you and me and everyone you know.
So, here's my small contribution. In ten days' time, I will be shaving my head. Completely, and believe me, that's a substantial amount of hair. I'd like you to donate whatever you can- all proceeds will go straight to the Disasters Emergency Committee (www.dec.org.uk) which, as a conglomerate of some of the most experienced UK charities in the field of disaster relief, has done incredible work in the last half century in more places than you can imagine. Go on- check out their website. In the meantime: it may be for the cause, or it may be because you are amused by the thought of me trying to conduct the rest of the winter with a modicum of personal dignity while completely hairless, but I'd like you to donate. Now. Do it!