Shattered – Documenting a nation in ruin
On January 12th 2010, in the span of just 37 seconds, the tiny impoverished Caribbean nation of Haiti was devastated by a massive earthquake. My first experience in Haiti was in May of this past year producing documentary photography and video for Compassion International, an international aid and development organization. Haiti had a profound effect on me. Years of experience in third world countries in East Africa and a few stints in war zones did little to prepare me for the level of desperation faced daily by most Haitians living under extreme poverty. I learned of the earthquake within minutes via online news resources. My heart sank because I knew that in the fleeting minutes before the quake the majority of Haitians were simply struggling to survive the day by finding food and clean water. Now this.
Within hours of the earthquake I was making preparations to cover the tragedy. Food, water, shelter, electricity and a reliable data connection would be the highest concerns. The first two were easy to solve with years of backpacking experience. Shelter came in the way of a trusted bevy sack for no buildings could be considered safe to sleep within. A trip to Radio Shack was made to purchase cigarette lighter plugs with alligator clips and DC extension cords that could be attached to a car battery for electricity. I secured a satellite data terminal, a Hughes HNS-9201, which guaranteed a high speed data connection for uploading photos and video.
I arrived in Port au Prince, Haiti on the evening of January 25th with a team of doctors who were tasked with setting up mobile clinics in and around the capital city. The devastation was incredible. I quickly came to understand that although the death toll was enormous the real tragedy was being played out in the desperate living conditions of the survivors. Nearly two million people were living in the streets of Port au Prince. Food and water were scarce particularly for the young, old or weak who could not travel to emergency aid distribution points. I did not meet a single Haitian who had not lost a family member in the quake.
For the following ten days I was tasked with providing a visual record of this nation now shattered to its core. Hope was a difficult thing to find but the occasional smile of a child caught in a playful moment provided a glimpse of the resiliency of the Haitian people and the promise, although faint, of a better future.
Presented here is a slide show of photographs of my attempts to portray Haiti today.
A video may be viewed here.
Slideshow, video and post by Shaun Stanley.
Reader submitted photos
In case you missed it, or haven’t had your fill of snow, The Herald asked readers for their best snow photos. Hundreds were sent in via e-mail, and we displayed a slide show of some on the site.
If you have photos, snow related or otherwise, add them to our community Flickr group at http://www.flickr.com/groups/durangoherald/
Helping Hands
Recently, reporter Katie Burford began a series called Helping Hands, looking at local non-profit agencies and the people in our community that benefit from their assistance. The first in the series ran Sunday, profiling 15-year-old violin virtuoso J.R. Smith and the help he has received. To complement her work, each photographer followed someone to capture photographs and audio, Katie recorded interviews, I produced audio slide shows and Phil Jones and myself packaged the series here. Three more are coming down the line soon, so check back for more.
Post by Josh Stephenson
Click here or on image below to enter project.
Going for the championship
As FLC headed to the championship game once again, we tried to give readers as many options as possible to get updates. As well as updating the score on our homepage with each goal, a twitter feed from FLC soccer gave updates, a like directed readers to the NCAA for streaming video and local radio coverage was linked to as well. Photographer Jerry McBride sent back whopping 64 image slide show to boot. Going into Saturday’s game, check the Herald for updates.
Mayor of Main Street
Apologies to all checking this blog lately. We’ve been on a bit of a multimedia sabbatical.
Also on hold for some time has been the Our Corner project. Both will get renewed attention, so please check back and thanks for sticking with us.
The latest entry to Our Corner is Amador Tucson, owner of Tucson’s on main. Clipping hair and using traditional straight razors from 1969 to this day, the hard working now 70-year-old has a sense of humor as quick as most teens and is known by his faithful clientele as the “Mayor of Main Street.”
Tucson also plays guitar and keeps in tune during lulls in business. Working roughly 10 hours a day, six days a week, Tucson was hard at work on his birthday.
Click here or on the photo below to watch the audio slide show.
Photo, slide show and post by Josh Stephenson
Research, education and ripe tomatoes come together at greenhouse clinic
I had the pleasure today of driving south of Durango on Highway 550 to County Road 215, where representatives from New Mexico State University and the Colorado State University Extension Office were building a greenhouse with the help of about 15 volunteers. The trade of sorts educated participants about greenhouse construction while those same participants provided free labor, constructing the greenhouse for research being conducted through a grant from Western Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education. SARE is described on its website as
“a program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that functions through competitive grants conducted cooperatively by farmers, ranchers, researchers and ag professionals to advance farm and ranch systems that are profitable, environmentally sound and good for communities.”
As one of ten “Hoop Houses” being built, measurements about climate and food production will be used to extend the growing season for farmers in the area. The weather emphasized the need Wednesday as a cold front moved into the area, producing gusts predicted to reach 50 miles per hour by days end.
The greenhouse should hold its ground however. Instructor Del Jimenez from NMSU has built about 400 of the structures throughout Rocky Mountain states. And the best part for volunteers was the knowledge gained to go home and build one of their own.
Post and slideshow by Josh Stephenson
Udall holds town hall in Durango
Recently, the Durango Herald has been testing the waters of live streaming video and has included it in recent coverage of President Barack Obama in Grand Junction and Senator Mark Udall in Durango. Senator Mark Udall’s office stated the official purpose of his visit to Durango was to discuss energy, however with the contentious topic of health care reform on everyones minds and television sets, questions about socialism and “death panel” made their way into the venue. Criticised by some as too constrictive a format, Udall answered hand written questions selected randomly with no option for dialog. We experienced some technical difficulty with streaming video on both occasions but we hope to dial it in on future efforts. Stay tuned…
post by Josh Stephenson, slideshow images by Eric Drummond, Nick Manning and Josh Stephenson
County looks to CSU for continued 4-H funding
County Commissioners approved the sending of a letter to Colorado State University asking them to continue funding for the regional Extension Agent to aid 4-H activities in the county after the departure of Bob Salzer who filled the post for 29 years. Recently, I had the pleasure of learning more about the grand 4-H family from Peg Aldridge. Peg grew up in Durango and her family has moved away and back again numerous times. Her granddaughter Gracie has been featured on the cover of two miniature Herford magazines while her other grandchildren won numerous awards at this year’s county fair. Her son-in-law Kyle Beebe is leader of the Pine River 4-H Beef Club.
post and audio slideshow by Josh Stephenson
Durango players battle at Connie Mack
The Four Corners Thunder faced off at the Connie Mack World Series in Farmington recently. The team was bounced out in two early losses.
post by Josh Stephenson Slideshow by Yodit Gidey
Fiesta Days off and running
JOSH STEPHENSON/Herald – The 74th Annual Durango Fiesta Days began with a parade on Main Avenue, then followed with an annual duck race and cook-off, rodeo performances and cowboy church services. I couldn’t help but imagine how different the Fiesta Day Parade would have been 30 years ago. While more than last year, attendance was low as the nearby Farmer’s Market featured an Iron Chef competition and a number of other summertime events competed for attention.
post and audio slideshow by Josh Stephenson
This is not a fun run
Endurance runners register for the Hard Rock 100 in Silverton with a variety of goals in mind, but winning is not usually one of them. One thing that amazed me about the winning woman was the interview after her 3rd place overall finish.
While a number of male competitors had spoken of the importance to stay mentally focused with eyes trained on the obstacles ahead, Diana Finkel conceded she looks around at wild flowers and wildlife to the point that she has become lost after running off the trail.
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post and content by Josh Stephenson
Durango Public Library opens
A week of special events accompanied the Grand Opening of Durango’s new public library, so along with 360 degree panoramas showing the new building, slideshows and video gave a look at the festivities including poetry classes, art presentations and barbershop quartets, culminating in fireworks above Rim Drive. Deanna Marcum from the Library of Congress even came to celebrate. The library has gone through a number expansion projects since Andrew Carnegie donated $12,500 for the original building over a century ago. The new facility came at a cost of 19 million. Click here or on the image to enter project.
post and project by Josh Stephenson
La Plata County Fair – 2008
What a busy week at the La Plata County Fair. Updated daily, this project ended up with 4 slideshows, 5 videos and 4 panoramas along with a schedule of events. Yodit Gidey and Jack Pincus compiled one slideshow, while the rest was done by yours truly. The demolition derby kicked off with a tribute to State Trooper Mark Dold, who died in a motorcycle crash and had been a staple at the event. The video includes a group building a tribute car to crash in his honor. Other fair staples here include the rodeo, midway and livestock competitions. Click here or on the photo to enter project.
post and most content by Josh Stephenson
