After quake, mother, daughter make life and death decisions

SILVERTON, Ore. - When the ground began to shake a week ago in Haiti, Rosie Thompson and her daughter Cierra, who were on the ground floor of a three-story building, ran for their lives.

With the compound they were staying in partially destroyed from the 7.0 earthquake, they stayed in a nearby field in a tent for four days where they witnessed the suffering of survivors all around them.

The Thompsons were working with Lifeline Christian Mission, a group dedicated to spreading Christianity to other countries.

They described the devastation that brought injured survivors and orphaned children to their camp.

“The first child I saw was the one brought in who had lost too much blood from his leg, and we had gathered around the family,” said Rosie.

“Since we’ve been back, I’ve been having flashes of people I’ve seen that I probably shouldn’t have seen,” said Cierra.

The two have no medical training but after the quake they were suddenly surrounded by injured victims.

With hospitals destroyed, the Thompsons had to help decide which victims would go to a small medical clinic for immediate help.

“We were actually going out to assess the people to see which ones needed the care more so than the ones that could pull through,” said Rosie.

She said it was difficult for a person with no medical training to make those life and death decisions.

They prayed with survivors and handed out clothes and supplies after the quake, and they finally returned home on Sunday when they were able to catch a ride on a U.S. military cargo plane.

They said some memories will stay with them forever, like a 6-year-old girl who walked alone for eight hours to get to the Christian compound.

They said they hope to return to Haiti someday to help with the rebuilding efforts.

Three Americans stayed behind in the Lifeline Christian Mission. They’re running out of fuel for their generator, and they have a critically injured girl who needs to get to hospital for surgery. But they haven’t found an airlift to take her there.