(DISCLAIMER: Some people may find images in this slideshow disturbing.)

After waiting a week after the January 12, 2010 earthquake in Haiti to hear back from a variety volunteer organizations that take doctors to disaster areas, Colorado Springs-based Orthopedic Surgeon Rick Meinig felt compelled to take matters into his own hands. Using connections he found mostly through Facebook, he rounded up a team of doctors, 1,000 lbs of donated medical supplies and a private plane to go to Haiti and help the wounded. In the week they were there, Meinig and his team helped over 100 people with excruciating wounds and fractures. Though they performed many amputations during their time there, they were also able to help many save their limbs.

In this first part of of a two-part interview and slide show, Meinig talks about why he went to such great lengths to get to Haiti and about the devastation he witnessed. In Part 2, tomorrow, Meinig will walk us through images of some of the remarkable surgeries he and his team performed.

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From last year’s All Tomorrow’s Parties: