By Petty Officer 2nd Class Trevor Lewis
HMCS Athabaskan
It was a normal working day 0700, Jan 13, 2010, as I approached the dockyard for a "regular" workday.
In passing my supervisor, Petty Officer 1st Class Drew Everest, commented, "Things were happening today!"
What do you mean? I asked, and his response was simple - "You'll find out soon enough".
Find out I did.
Of course, he was referring to the earthquake in Haiti, and rumours, soon to be fact, that Athabaskan would be deploying.
As a naval technician of 18-plus years I admit this was the first time I had experienced such a short notice deployment. Turns out we received confirmation on the afternoon of Jan. 13, and due to all the work required onboard, my wife did not pick me up until 10 that evening. This was, of course, so I could go home get the necessary accessories - clean socks, underwear, shaving kit, etc. Also to say good-bye to the kids and extended family members including my parents Bill and Shirley Lewis in the fine residence of Bedeque, P.E.I.
Off we go, on our way to the unknown.
Athabaskan departed on the afternoon of the 14th after a busy morning of storing ship and a departure message from the Minister of National Defence, Peter MacKay.
OK, how do you prepare for the unknown? We've stocked up on shovels, gloves, food supplies and body bags. Sure you can surf the net for as much information as possible, but in fact, it is only words and pictures.
Athabaskan arrived on station Jan. 18 and our work parties prepared to go ashore for the next morning. Only certain members of the ship's company could go ashore this day and, fortunately for me, I was one. The teams headed ashore via RHIB (rigid-hulled inflatable boat) to a beach area that would best allow us to get where we were required to go.
This was it, we are actually on our way and the unknown would soon be known.
The beach area was flooded with people; I think these people were expecting food and water and yes, there were hundreds of folks wondering what we were up to. Shore teams took the supplies we had to a waiting bus, and we loaded up to go to our first worksite.
I thought I should take notes while we transited to the next location, but that was an impossible task due to the road conditions, and frequent stops.
One thing I do remember vividly and actually wrote down was I saw two young kids playing outside with a little puppy. They were chasing each other around their crumpled house near the tents they now use as home.
The town around them has just crumpled to the ground and they are playing like everything is normal. This just reconfirms that some kids - and adults for that matter - in our society need a reality check.
Work parties went ashore every day, and tasks include assisting CMAT (Canadian Medical Assistance Team) with triage and moving patients, cleaning and rebuilding several orphanages, as well as cleanup at a retirement home. This is all done in a town called Leogane, which is not far from the capital of Haiti.
How long will we be here?
Unknown.
How much have we helped?
Immeasurably!
Petty Officer 2nd Class Trevor Lewis is stationed aboard HMCS Athabaskan. His parents live in Bedeque. March 9 was supposed to be his crew's last day ashore in Haiti.
