#1623: The fire in Jeremie : Laleau replies to Durran

[Robert Corbett <bcorbett@netcom.com>]

From:NLaleau@aol.com

Dear Mary Durran,

... "in a pile of dust in Jeremie."  And it's almost impossible that there 
will be any other fate for the fire engine.  The only hope of its reaching 
Jeremie in one piece is to send it on one of the ferries.  The road across 
the mountains has killed so many vehicles (and sacroiliacs) that I can't 
imagine an aging fire-engine negotiating it!  I sure hope somebody thinks 
about that.  If it makes it to Jeremie, and doesn't go far out of town to put 
out fires, it could survive for a considerable length of time -- but if 
ANYTHING breaks down, anything at all, it will be a long-shot as to repairs.  
For one thing, are parts even obtainable in the USA?  For another, will there 
be a mechanic in Jeremie capable of fixing it (or rigging a combinaison that 
will do)?  I went through seven (7!) mechanics and a couple trips to Miami 
for parts before my 1985 Honda Civic was driveable... three of the mechanics 
were in Les Cayes (where I sat for a week watching one man pound out 
coathangers he was using as tools), and the other four were in the Capital -- 
some of them were well-reputed, too... but only the seventh one actually 
fixed the car -- the day before I was to leave Haiti.

Lots of luck to The Little Engine That Would like to.

Nancy Laleau