Earthquake Hits Haiti

As most of you know a 7-magnitude earthquake hit Haiti the other day. This is the first earthquake that has hit there in almost 200 years! The Red Cross spokesman Paul Conneally has stated that an estimated 3 million people may have been affected by the quake and that it would take a day or two for a detailed report of the damage. It has been reported that people have been pulling bodies from collapsed homes and covering them with sheets along the roads while passerby’s try to identify the bodies. Tens of thousands of people have lost their homes and many were killed in collapsed buildings. Hospitals of course are unable to handle every victim due to the severity of the quakes. Below you’ll find a map with a time line of the quakes since 1900. In these times of devastation it is important that we come together as humanity. Please pray for the people of Haiti as they need our prayers, help, and generousity in this time of devestation.

It is said that the President Obama has promised aid to Haiti. White house officials said Obama had asked aides to make sure U.S. personnel at the embassy were safe. There are fewer than 20 U.S. military personell in Haiti. Officials said Obama told them to start preparing in case humanitarian assistance as needed. USAID said it was sending a disaster assistance response team. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that the U.S. was gathering information about the quakes impact and that the U.S. has offered its full assistance both civilian and military to Haiti.

Here are some random facts about Haiti:

-Haiti is the poorest country in the America’s with an annual per-capita income of $560. It ranks 146th out of 177 countries on the UNDP Human Development Index.

-Haiti’s infrastructure is close to total collapse and severe deforestation has left only 2 percent forest cover.

-After decades of dictatorship, former Roman Catholic priest Jean-Bertrand Aristide became Haiti’s first freely elected leader in 1990. He was ousted by a military coup in 1991 but reinstated with U.S. backing. He was forced out of the country and into exile in 2004 by a rebellion of gangs and former soldiers.

-Haiti has been led by President Rene Preval since May 2006 when the country returned to its constitutional rule.
(graphics courtesy of MSN)