International Action technician Joanes Bastin was lighting his oven when the propane gas tank it was attached to exploded. He was burned quite badly over his face, head arms, and upper body. He has a hard and painful recovery ahead of him as he has lost quite a bit of skin. His wife was also burned but not as badly. Joanes saved her by taking the brunt of the explosion.

Update – March 2007: Joanes and his wife are recovering from propane burns suffered when their stove exploded. Knop wrote from Haiti, “Joanes is hanging in, although he will have a long road to recovery. He embodies the true sense of the word courage. I truly admire his determination and tenacity. We are very lucky to have him on our team.”