DENVER - The earthquake is hitting home here in Colorado, for hundreds of people trying to find out about friends and colleagues down in Haiti.
One local group was set to leave Thursday on their annual medical relief mission to Haiti.
At the tiny office of the Colorado Haiti Project, director Paul Casey and volunteers are swamped trying to funnel information, after their annual Haiti mission trip had to be canceled.
"It's absolutely a very painful irony because, of course, there's a great need for medical attention right there, but there's no way we can get them in right now," said Casey.
They also cannot get news about the 500-student school they built in Haiti, where 130 teachers are also being trained.
"We have 53 people on staff at the site and we've not heard from any of them," said Casey. "So our concern is really about their well being, the well being of the children."
The project helped bring Jean Hilare Rejouis here a month ago. He's now fearful for family, friends and the devastation in his home of Port au Prince.
"I talked to some of them yesterday," he said of his family members, "So today, I can't find them so I only communicate through email with a friend so I know my family's safe."
But he says he's been overwhelmed with the horror of the pictures he's seen so far.
"Inside of me I'm dead inside, so that I can say," said Rejouis, who's only been speaking English a few months.
"I don't think anyone but probably military and perhaps U.N. personnel are going to be going into and out of Haiti at this point," said Haiti Project's Casey. "My hope is that they can ramp up their efforts very quickly because it's not only going to continue it's going to get worse."
Casey says the devastation they are seeing will make it even harder, but his volunteers will do everything they can to help relieve the suffering.
"They care about the people in the area very deeply, it's like a family situation for us. It's not just abstract at all," Casey said.
Rejouis says he's now lost all communication with his friends and fears many people he knows will be among the dead.
You can get the latest on the Colorado Haiti Project by going to: http://www.coloradohaitiproject.org/
One local group was set to leave Thursday on their annual medical relief mission to Haiti.
At the tiny office of the Colorado Haiti Project, director Paul Casey and volunteers are swamped trying to funnel information, after their annual Haiti mission trip had to be canceled.
"It's absolutely a very painful irony because, of course, there's a great need for medical attention right there, but there's no way we can get them in right now," said Casey.
They also cannot get news about the 500-student school they built in Haiti, where 130 teachers are also being trained.
"We have 53 people on staff at the site and we've not heard from any of them," said Casey. "So our concern is really about their well being, the well being of the children."
The project helped bring Jean Hilare Rejouis here a month ago. He's now fearful for family, friends and the devastation in his home of Port au Prince.
"I talked to some of them yesterday," he said of his family members, "So today, I can't find them so I only communicate through email with a friend so I know my family's safe."
But he says he's been overwhelmed with the horror of the pictures he's seen so far.
"Inside of me I'm dead inside, so that I can say," said Rejouis, who's only been speaking English a few months.
"I don't think anyone but probably military and perhaps U.N. personnel are going to be going into and out of Haiti at this point," said Haiti Project's Casey. "My hope is that they can ramp up their efforts very quickly because it's not only going to continue it's going to get worse."
Casey says the devastation they are seeing will make it even harder, but his volunteers will do everything they can to help relieve the suffering.
"They care about the people in the area very deeply, it's like a family situation for us. It's not just abstract at all," Casey said.
Rejouis says he's now lost all communication with his friends and fears many people he knows will be among the dead.
You can get the latest on the Colorado Haiti Project by going to: http://www.coloradohaitiproject.org/
