A NEWPORT charity worker yesterday told how she witnessed the devastation that killed thousands when floods hit Haiti.

Kate Scannell-Michel is based in Port-au-Prince, the capital of the Caribbean country, with relief agency World Vision.

This week she trekked to remote areas where whole villages and hundreds of bodies are covered by flood waters.

She said: "I flew over the remote village of Mapou and it looks like a huge lake. You can see the tops of houses on the surface of the water.

"Some 2,000 people are thought to have died or are missing. Many of the bodies are still underwater. There's a risk of contamination."

World Vision have been in Haiti for 25 years helping to improve farming methods, infrastructure and healthcare. But when the floods hit last week the charity focused on emergency relief.

Speaking from Haiti, Mrs Scannell-Michel, 30, a former head girl at Caerleon Comprehensive, said: "We're delivering plastic sheeting for shelter, water containers and clothing.

"There's a sense here that this is a big disaster - there was a national day of mourning last week.

"Up to 20,000 people have been affected by losing relatives, homes or livestock. June is the rainy and hurricane season, so things could get even worse."

Newport-born Mrs Scannell-Michel met a Haitian, Storly Michel, the director of a Christian radio station, in the UK and married in January. The couple now live in Port-au-Prince, which has not been hit by the floods, and where she works as a communications manager.

She graduated from Aston University and has worked for World Vision for nine years, travelling to Africa and South America.

She said: "Haiti is a fascinating place and it's my long-term home now. There's always a crisis here but that's the work I'm involved in."

Her father, John Scannell, of Adam Close, Usk, said: "It's a difficult place to be but she's keeping very well and I'm proud of the work