LDS relief: Glimmers of hope amid horror in Haiti

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — As the death toll from the Jan. 12 Haitian earthquake soars from tens of thousands to possibly several hundred thousand, little glimmers of light and hope still have shone through in Port-au-Prince.

Two such stories were told Tuesday at the Central chapel of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as the church's emergency-response team of volunteer doctors and nurses arrived to start assessing medical needs and treating the injured and ailing.

Among the first seen by the volunteers in one of the meetinghouse's classrooms were Fabiola Beauvil and her 4-day-old baby, Klaira Eliska, both survivors of the 7.0-magnitude quake that left much of Haiti's capital city and surrounding areas in shambles, hundreds of thousands homeless and many more suffering from hunger, thirst and injuries.

Speaking through an interpreter in her native Creole, Beauvil said she was inside her home when the evening tremors began and rushed outside without grabbing any belongings. She emerged unscathed, despite the roof collapsing around her while she ran out.

Others in the house were not as lucky. A number of other friends and family members weren't able to escape, and their bodies remain entombed inside the home.

Outside and continuing to feel the tremors and aftershocks, Beauvil also felt labor coming on, with her water breaking. Three days later, her little girl was born.

Beauvil was inside the LDS Church's Central chapel when the medical team arrived, sitting in the hallway and gently holding her newborn. She later was placed in a classroom, with Klaira wide awake and resting on a mattress, as doctors and nurses came to give both mother and daughter checkups to confirm all was well.

Beauvil is not a member of the LDS faith, and the 4,000 people congregating each day and into the night at the seven Port-au-Prince area chapels are comprised of both LDS Church members and nonmembers alike.

While the LDS medical team is comprised entirely of Mormon doctors, nurses and emotional-health specialists, they are treating and seeing anyone, regardless of church affiliation.

Soon after arrival, the volunteer staff started to look at the most seriously injured — one LDS woman was likely to lose a hand after debris from her home fell on her arm. Benjamin Louise Danixlla said she was putting herself in God's hands, even if it meant losing one of her own.

A 9-year-old LDS boy also received prompt attention for his right leg, which was crushed in the quake.