Haitians try to rebuild lives in aftermath of Hurricane Melissa

People gathered around a small convenience store in the Haitian town of Petit-Goâve on Friday to buy food after receiving cash assistance from the World Food Programme.

It was some welcome relief for residents as they try to rebuild their lives following the deadly passage in October of Hurricane Melissa.

In line to buy food was resident Joceline Antoine, who lost five family members when the Category 5 storm pummelled the region.

“My house is destroyed, the water came in. I lost my animals, I lost family,” she said.

Melissa killed at least 43 people across Haiti, many of them in Petit-Goâve, where residents are still digging out from under the storm that unleased deadly flooding.

Huge piles of dirt and mud now smother this southern coastal town, which once bustled with farmers and street vendors.

Lola Castro, regional director of the UN World Food Programme who recently visited Petit-Goâve, said Melissa has exacerbated Haiti's crisis.

“Around 5.3 million people don’t have enough to eat every day in Haiti,” she said. “That’s a huge challenge.”

“We are currently distributing money to vulnerable people affected by Hurricane Melissa. These individuals receive a voucher with they use for food,” she said.

This offers three benefits, she said. One of them is that purchasing locally produced food is helping local businesses and the economy rebuild.

Petit-Goâve is an agricultural community that depended heavily on crops, including plantain, corn and beans.

“They have lost their income. They have lost their means of living,” she said.

Haiti is dealing with ongoing gang violence in a conflict that has forced nearly one and a half million people from their homes and driven up the island’s humanitarian needs.

Armed groups control much of the capital and surrounding areas and are accused of mass killings, gang rapes, extortion, and arson.