Loved Ones Keep Vigil Amid Hotel Montana's Ruins
Eric Nyman's fiancee was buried in the Jan. 12 quake. - Eric Nyman's fiancee was buried in the rubble of the Jan. 12 quake. He keeps vigil at Port-au-Prince's destroyed Hotel Montana. (Tamara Keith / NPR)
The Hotel Montana was one of the nicest hotels in Haiti's capital city. It attracted an international blend of tourists, aid workers and dignitaries.
So its collapse in the earthquake two weeks ago immediately captured the world's attention. Some people were rescued, but officials say there may be as many as 100 still missing in the rubble.
The hotel is perched up on a hill with a view of the entire city. But Eric Nyman, 36, isn't looking at the scenery. He can't take his eyes off the pile of shattered concrete where he knows his fiancee is trapped — lost somewhere in a tangle of rebar, rock and bedsheets.
(Tamara Keith / NPR)
He couldn't imagine being anywhere else. "Of course not; that's the love of my life," Nyman says.
He's sitting next to the Montana's empty pool, one of the few spots at the hotel still intact.
When the earthquake struck, the California native was in Panama. He's an environmental engineer and does development work there. That's where he met his fiancee, Chrystel Cancel, 35, who is from France. She had just arrived in Port-au-Prince to work with USAID.
Nyman says, "I was sitting in front of the TV and in front of the computer with very little information, and I just, I just had to move. So I came to the site and started the search along with everyone else."
Teams from the United States and elsewhere are using heavy machinery now.
A small group of family members, mostly Haitians, huddle in the shade outside of what was once a restaurant. It is now a temporary morgue. There's a large handwritten list of the missing, their gender and nationality. A candle flickers on a ledge in front of it.
Alix Pasquet is looking for his former brother-in-law, Woody Bennett.
"He's buried somewhere underneath this rubble," Pasquet says.
He knows Bennett is in the hotel's restaurant, where every Tuesday at the same time he would enjoy gazpacho with his friends. The restaurant was flattened.
"You can smell, you know, the smell of death is very strong," Pasquet adds. "Even if I force the French to remove every single slab of concrete, I'm going to have them do it until I find his body."
Nyman has the same resolve.
"At this point, I've lived several lifetimes. The things that I've seen inside that hotel — everyone here knows why I'm here and who I'm looking for. So when she is found, I will know it. I'm not going to visit the body. I will just have closure. But then again, there are miracles."
Nyman and his fiancee had only been engaged for three days.
The pain is visible in his face. He's crying, and so is everyone around him.
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STEVE INSKEEP, host:
Next, we're going to meet some people in Haiti who have no reason left to hope, but haven't lost their determination. They have connections to people in the rubble of the Hotel Montana. It was one of the finest places in Port-au-Prince, a weigh station for tourists and aid workers and dignitaries. Some people were rescued when the hotel collapsed. As many as 100 are still missing, and some of their loved ones spoke with NPR's Tamara Keith.
TAMARA KEITH: The Hotel Montana is perched up on a hill with a view of the entire city. But 36-year-old Eric Nyman isn't looking at the scenery. He can't take his eyes off the pile of shattered concrete where he knows his fiancee is trapped, lost somewhere in a tangle of rebar, rock and bed sheets. He couldn't imagine being anywhere else.
Mr. ERIC NYMAN: Of course not. I mean, it's the love of my life. So...
KEITH: He's sitting next to the Montana's now-empty pool, one of the few spots of the hotel still intact. As we talked, his voice trails off. He's too focused on the rubble.
When the earthquake struck, the California native was in Panama. He's an environmental engineer and does development work there. That's where he met his 35-year-old fiancee, Chrystel Cancel, who's from France. She had just arrived in Port-au-Prince to work with USAID.
Mr. NYMAN: I was sitting in front of the TV and in front of the computer with very little information, and I just had to move. So I came to the site and started the search, along with everyone else.
(Soundbite of rubble being moved)
KEITH: Search and rescue teams from the United States and elsewhere are using heavy machinery now. A small group of family members, mostly Haitian, huddle in the shade outside of what was once a restaurant and is now a temporary morgue. There's a large, handwritten list of the missing, their gender and nationality. A candle flickers on a ledge in front of it.
Alix Pasquet is looking for his ex-brother-in-law, Woody Bennett.
Mr. ALIX PASQUET: He's buried somewhere underneath this rubble.
KEITH: He knows Bennett is in the hotel's restaurant, where every Tuesday at the same time, he would enjoy a gazpacho with his friends. The restaurant was flattened.
Mr. PASQUET: You can smell - you know, the smell of death is very strong. Even if I force the French to remove every single slab of concrete, I'm going to have them do it until I find his body.
KEITH: Eric Nyman has the same resolve.
Mr. NYMAN: At this point, I've lived several lifetimes. And - the things that I've seen inside that hotel. And everyone here knows why I'm here and who I'm looking for, so when she is found, I'll know it. I'm not going to visit the body. I will just have closure. But then again, there are miracles, and...
KEITH: I asked him how long they've been engaged. The pain is visible in his face.
Mr. NYMAN: Three days.
KEITH: Three days. He's crying, and so is everyone around him.
Tamara Keith, NPR News, Port-au-Prince. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright National Public Radio.
