BYU student worried about family in Haiti

PETIONVILLE, Haiti — Minutes after Wednesday's 5.9 aftershock rattled the already-beleaguered nation of Haiti, Rousseline Salter got a text from her family: "Please help us, we are scared."

"It's been hard," the 27-year-old BYU student said from her apartment in Provo, "knowing that they don't have a place to sleep, no food or water, especially with Rousselande having an infection."

Salter's sister, Rousselande, first called last week to pass along the message that they were alive and well, for the most part.

Rousselande, 23, said that after the devastating earthquake, she had been trapped in her collapsed college building for nearly 18 hours before rescuers found her, and had suffered an injured leg.

Salter learned Wednesday that Rousselande suffered cuts and scratches that are now swollen and painful. "I am pretty sure it's infected," Salter said.

The entire family has been looking for a doctor around their home town of Delmas, but they have yet to see any make it beyond Port-au-Prince, Salter said.

Doctors from the LDS humanitarian group were in the area today and might have treated Rousselande, one of the doctors, Jeff Randle, told a Deseret News reporter who is in Haiti covering relief efforts. If not, they hope she can make it to the LDS Central Ward chapel in Port-au-Prince, where they could treat her.

Salter's family is also hoping to see some of the food and water they've heard is trickling into the capital city, she said.

Right now, Salter's father, Emmanuel, and five of her siblings are sleeping in a field west of Delmas. Both their home and the LDS Stake Center where they had sought refuge came crumbling down after an aftershock last week.

A field is not ideal, Salter says, but it's better than the body-lined streets.

It's a situation no one wants to picture for their family.

But for Salter's mother, Lomene, that's all she can do.

Lomene and Emmanuel came to Utah two weeks ago for another daughter's wedding. Emmanuel flew home hours before the quake hit, but Lomene stayed to help with Salter's 4-month-old baby, Kyle.

Now, she's stuck in Provo due to the inability to get a commercial flight to Haiti, and the separation is growing unbearable.

"She doesn't talk about it," Salter said of her mother. "She's been worried about the kids and crying."

Salter said they want to get their family out of the country, but not everyone has a visa, which would make travel nearly impossible.

So for now, it's a waiting game, as the divided family prays for the shaking to stop and the supplies to arrive.

"It's been a hard week, but things could be worse," Salter said. "There are some people that they haven't found their family members or don't know what happened to them. I am grateful they are alive, despite what else is going on."

Contributing: Scott Taylor

e-mail: sisraelsen@desnews.com