Sean Penn Wants to "Beat the Rain in Haiti."

Perennial bad boy and Oscar winner, Sean Penn was clearly moved by his recent trip to Haiti shortly after the devastating earthquake. He was one of the first celebrities to aid the relief effort. The actor/activist spent over three weeks living in a tent and trying to help the survivors.

Recently he described his experiences to EXTRA- TV host, Mario Lopez as Civil War- like. He saw amputations being performed with no anesthetics, using whatever tools were available.

Penn and his associate, philanthropist - entrepreneur Diana Jenkins, and their Haitian Relief Organization, have been extremely active and successful in their humanitarian efforts in Haiti. They have cut through red tape and delivered thousands of pounds of medical supplies, hospital equipment and food, as well as medical services to earthquake victims. Their efforts continue.

Now Penn and his partner want to raise awareness and funds to relocate thousands of earthquake survivors now living in tent cities. Something must be done as soon as possible. When the heavy spring rains come in March, these tent cities will be washed away. Residents will be left homeless and vulnerable to diseases such as cholera, typhoid, malaria, tuberculosis and tetanus. Some of these diseases are already spreading due to the unsanitary and crowded conditions of the camps.

As many as 750,000 homeless people are now crowded into tent cities in Port au Prince. With the coming rains, conditions will only get worse, and a massive public health disaster will occur. Shelter from the rain in these camps now is virtually non existent. Sean Penn says in order to help these people "We Need to Beat the Rain in Haiti" and that is the name of his newest campaign.

Penn said that unless people are relocated out of the tent cities soon, when the rains come, disease will be epidemic and thousands will die. Relocation to safer parts of the country is one option, while building and providing temporary shelters is another.

Approximately $8 million is needed to build temporary, 500 square foot homes immediately and to deliver them.

A company in Houston, Texas is building small shed type shelters for the people of Haiti. They want to build 10,000 of them. They cost about $600 each to build and ship.

Penn encourages Americans to donate any amount they can to the Jenkins-Penn Haitian Relief Organization. He wants people to understand that unless relocation and shelters are set up, the rain will be disastrous and diseases will spread "on a scale we've never seen."

http://extratv.warnerbros.com

Sean Penn-Wikipedia

http://www.wopular.com/sean-penn-we-need-beat-rain-haiti.