Article content

First, the most important detail: Mario Ducheine is safe. He was able to contact his Quebec-based cousin, Marie-Lourdes Ducheine, and assure her of that.

Unfortunately, Hurricane Matthew cut a wide swath of destruction after it struck Haiti earlier this week. The country’s interior minister said Thursday that at least 108 deaths had been reported and more than 28,000 homes had been damaged.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Redblacks exec devastated by tragic news in Haiti Back to video

It was yet another tragic blow for a country where a 2010 earthquake left more than 200,000 dead and tens of thousands living in tents and makeshift dwellings. Many were still living in shelters when Hurricane Matthew struck, media reports said.

“It’s just a matter to see, once things calm down, just how bad it really is,” said Jean-Marc Edmé, Marie-Lourdes’ son, “but it doesn’t look good.”

Jean-Marc Edmé has a job that couldn’t possibly be more removed from the current situation facing relatives and others in Haiti. He’s player-personnel co-ordinator of the Ottawa Redblacks of the Canadian Football League, and being both secure and isolated from the hurricane has left him with a wide range of emotions.