OFW shares how they are holding out in Port-au-Prince

MANILA, Philippines - Filipino survivors of the magnitude 7.0 earthquake in Haiti are now mulling leaving the country, as food supplies dwindle and chaos increases by the day.

In an exclusive interview via Skype on Sunday, Henry Riobuya, an overseas Filipino worker in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, described to ANC's Dateline Philippines how life in quake-hit Haiti becomes more difficult each day.

Riobuya is staying at a compound in Port-au-Prince with some 34 other Filipinos. One of them was injured in the quake, but has received treatment at the United Nations mission.

"Dito sa compound na ito, mayroong bahay ng Pilipino- bale 3 bahay ng Pilipino. Apat na Pilipino ang may bahay dito, tapos dito kami nagtitipun-tipon kasi itong lugar medyo safe sa aming lahat," Riobuya said.

Riobuya said that they group has enough food to last for 3 to 4 days.

"Meron kaming mga pagkain na natira noon before the earthquake dito sa Haiti, and then kanina sa isang kasama namin na nagtatrabaho sa depot na nagtatrabaho sa stockan ng mga karne at bigas [nagdala ng pagkain]," he said. "Nakakapagluto kami pero hindi namin matiyak kung hanggang kailan 'yun."

"Sa tantya ko, mga 3 days or 4 days ang maximum wala na siguro," he said.

Luckily, he said that no one is getting sick, and all of them have spoken to their families back home.

Corrdinating with the DFA

With the devastation gripping the Caribbean nation, Riobuya said it is difficult to walk in the streets, with the stench of decaying dead bodies filling the air.

He added that food is running out, and the threat of looting is real.

Because of the disintegrating situation in the country, Riobuya said that Filipinos in Port-au-Prince are scheduled to meet Monday local time to talk about what to do next in light of the disaster in the country.

"Hindi pa tapos [ang] pinag-uusapan. Maaring bukas magtipun-tipon muli ang mga Pilipino dito sa Haiti, na mag-usap kung ano ang dapat gawin namin," he said.

He said that he has talked with Honorary Philippine Consul Cecille Grant, who is also his boss, about possible plans to move the Filipinos to neighboring Dominican Republic. (See map below)

"Ang sabi niya sa akin maaari kaming mag-move papuntang Dominican Republic, pero wala pa ring tentative schedule kaya ‘yon ang pag-uusapan namin bukas," he said.

"Sa napagusapan namin kanina baka maaari kaming papuntahin ng Santo Domingo (the capital of the Dominican Republic), kasi kung dito parang mahirap kung sunduin kami ng airlines kasi iyong airport ay busy para sa mga ibang bagay," he added.

Most of them, however, are torn between leaving Haiti and going back to the relative safety of the Philippines, and staying in the country and helping out.

Riobuya, personally, is scheduled to go home for a vacation in May, but because of the quake, he said he is now also considering not coming back.

He estimates that the factory where he works might take a long time to recover - from 6 months to maybe a year.

"Actually, may kontrata ako sa kumpanya na round-trip ticket, kung ako man ay magbabakasyon. Kaya lang sa pangyayari ngayon ay nag-iisip din ako na hindi... sa akin walang problema. Gusto ko din makatulong sa iba," he said. With a report from the ABS-CBN News Channel

Map: Haiti and the Dominican Republic

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