When a catastrophic magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck Haiti in 2010, it was by all measures a ‘mega disaster’. The capital city of Port-au-Prince was hit especially hard and its infrastructure was devastated. Surviving government members began to manage the aftermath in unbearable heat and humidity without electrical power or other essential utilities. All four power plants serving the city were off line and the earthquake had tossed 56-ton transformers from their bases. To continue governing and make effective decisions during recovery and relief efforts, Haiti required temporary facilities with electricity, structural reliability, and comfort to keep the government operational.

Unger Electric arrived to design and manage the electrical requirements, while Proteus On-Demand Facilities responded to construct a turn-key temporary office for the Haitian government. Working in tandem, the two companies had the structure operational within 10 days. Unger provided all equipment needed to provide temporary electrical power the air conditioning and other required electrical needs, which included lighting and communications.

“Initially we shipped generators to Haiti, but as utility power substations were repaired, permanent power was utilized in the temporary structures,” said Jeff Unger, founder and development director, Unger Electric, LLC. “We supported Haiti’s power requirements for approximately six months, ensuring its facilities ran efficiently and comfortably. Today, all government operations are back to normal operations.”