For many UB students and Buffalo residents, the devastation from last week's earthquake in Haiti may seem worlds away, but for others, the tragedy hits closer to home.
According to Donald Goralski, the senior program officer of Business Development and Strategic Partnerships and MCEER, Filiatrault and his colleagues are fully prepared for their undertaking.
'Members of the AIDG-MCEER Haiti Earthquake Engineering Relief Mission possess structural and earthquake engineering know-how to help determine the safety of the damaged structures,' Goralski said. 'Several members have experience conducting engineering investigations following previous devastating earthquakes.'
Goralski points out that MCEER has been dispatched after previous earthquakes, but the nature of this mission is different.
'[Previous assignments were] typically focused on gathering data that can be used to improve the stability of structures and infrastructure in future earthquakes,' Goralski said. 'This mission is truly a relief mission. It will result in speeding much-needed aid to the people of Haiti in these most challenging of times.'
Goralski enumerates the challenges the team is likely to face in Haiti – the suffering population in their midst, disease and civil unrest, and the possibility of earthquake aftershocks. Despite this, he believes Filiatrualt and his colleagues are well prepared and courageous.
'They have taken every precaution possible and have chosen to leave the comforts of home to help bring some comfort to others,' Goralski said. '[This is] very noble of them.'
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