A Haitian orphanage run by a Catholic priest from Lewiston came under attack late last week as violence pitting government loyalists against rebels fighting to oust President Jean-Bertrand Aristide spread.

One teenager living at Father Marc Boisvert’s Project Hope orphanage in Les Cayes was shot in the stomach Thursday by thugs who stole the boy’s bicycle as well as a truck owned by the orphanage.

Boisvert brought the boy to a hospital for treatment after the shooting. His condition couldn’t be immediately determined.

Thugs loyal to Aristide also took over a house at the orphanage, according a note posted by the priest on one of his mission’s Web sites.

“Thank you for your prayers,” Boisvert wrote Friday. “Yesterday was a horrible day here. Our house for the staff was taken over by Lavalas thugs.”

Rebels, meanwhile, set up roadblocks in nearby LaMadonne, he added.

“There were bullets flying every which way,” Boisvert wrote, adding, “No one of ours was hurt.”

Father Boisvert couldn’t be reached by e-mail Sunday night. Earlier, Boisvert said the orphanage often has electricity for no more than 10 hours a day.

In the days leading up to Aristide’s decision to flee Haiti Sunday, Boisvert said that “Houses continue to be burned… Saw a poor kid who was burned all over. He was in the hospital and he will surely die as we just don`t have the wherewithal to care for him. Anyone have access to a helicopter?

“Our truck is now in the hands of the Lavalas (Aristide) folks,” he continued, “and it has bullet holes. Some guy came by this morning to ask for money so that he could return the truck to us. I refused.

“Things are not good. I remember a line I read somewhere that I think Pres. Kennedy quoted a long time ago: All it takes for evil to succeed is for good men to do nothing. Where is the international community? Please pray for us.”

Kathy Comito, director of the hospital at Fond des Blancs and a good friend to Hope House, was evacuated with American doctors to one of the Virgin Islands, according to Jack Reynolds, one of those maintaining Boisvert’s Web site.

The Fond des Blancs hospital was visited earlier this year by professionals from St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center in Lewiston, where they provide volunteer health care service.

“Hi Jack,” wrote Comito to Reynolds Sunday. “Good news; I was able to to talk to Marc this morning. I got in on his cell very early. He sounded okay, said that things are quieter there, at least yesterday… His biggest concern is food and hopes that (an agency) still has a decent supply in their warehouse in the South. Most of the stores are closed.”

She also noted Boisvert is trying to find help for the burned youth he came across in Les Cayes.

“He asked me to try to find a Shriners Hospital in the States to take the young man he talked about in his newsletter.” Comito wrote. “I will ask all the doctors currently here from the U.S. and stay in touch with you. He said ‘Please send money!’

“Of course the news of does not mean a quick end to the chaos, but last I heard on CNN , there is talk of a multi-national peace keeping force going in soon. I wonder what is meant by soon?”

Earlier, friends of the priest, who also has strong ties to and support from St. Mary’s, posted concern about the then worsening situation in Haiti.

“… we received a very disturbing situation report from Father Marc in Les Cayes this morning,” they noted on the Web site Thursday. “A group of armed thugs attacked the orphanage this morning to steal a military style truck (Father Marc had acquired a couple years ago) that was parked immediately inside the compound gate.

“When the thugs approached the orphanage, one of Father Marc’s teens was outside the gate on a bike. He complied with their demands for him to give them the bike, and then they shot him in the stomach. After that the thugs came through the gate into the compound and took the truck. Father Marc took the boy to the hospital where they performed surgery to remove the bullet,” they noted.

“The police have fled Les Cayes,” they added. “There is no government authority to keep order or protect the populace.”

Father Boisvert’s mother and two sisters live in the Twin Cities area. The Project Hope orphanage that he runs cares for about 200 boys and its soup kitchen routinely feeds more 1,000 others each day. The mission also is developing an agriculturally based village for boys, runs several schools and has a health clinic.