Local doctor reflects on Haiti earthquake 5 years later

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- It has been five years since a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Haiti, killing hundreds of thousands of people.

Concrete construction with no codes turned buildings into deathtraps when the catastrophic quake struck on Jan. 12, 2010.

The Haitian government says 316,000 people were killed, and 1.5 million were left homeless. Those who were displaced ended up in horrid tent cities, where food was scarce. Water, even though it was provided by the government, was contaminated. You could see it in the children's skin and hair.

In the middle of all this suffering five years ago, I met Dr. Henri Ford, chief of surgery at Children's Hospital Los Angeles.

Ford has spent the last five years traveling back to his native country of Haiti to help with the long recovery.

Ford showed me his makeshift hospital in the middle of a soccer field. He was instantly saving lives, yet overcome with sorrow.

"You try to envision what the scene was like that fateful Tuesday afternoon when the Earth started shaking, and it just tears your heart out," said Ford.

On this fifth anniversary of the catastrophe, I reunited with Ford in his office at Children's Hospital.

"The magnitude of the devastation was just mindboggling. There was nothing that could have prepared me for what I was about to encounter," said Ford.

Ford is about to hop on yet another flight to Haiti, with medical supplies piled high for his trip.

"The moment I land there, I will go straight to the hospital where I will have at least 30 to 40 patients waiting to be scheduled for surgery. Over the course of the next five to seven days, we will be operating on those children," said Ford.

It's something Ford has been doing every three months for the last five years. He says Haiti is slowly recovering, but medical service is still the greatest need. The hospital he works in is the only existing trauma center in the entire country.

"That is the only place in Haiti where there is a functioning intensive care unit for adults or for children. And that really says a lot about the deplorable conditions that exist down there," said Ford.

Seeing images of suffering from five years ago is difficult for Ford, but it also reinforces his resolve to help his struggling country.

"Seeing people who were wounded, covered with blood ... it was very, very traumatic to relive that experience again. But it's also a very stark reminder that the suffering that took place cannot be in vain," said Ford.