Tragedy in Haiti
 

Article featured in Avatar - Volume 3, Issue 8 (February 2010).


Haiti, the first independent nation in Latin America, still remains the poorest country in the western world. On January 12th, 2010, tragedy struck the island nation. At 4:52 p.m. local time Haiti was hit by an earthquake measuring 7.0Mw on the moment magnitude scale. The epicenter, 25km (16 miles) west of the capital and major port city Port-au-Prince, was near Léogâne. Although a 7.0Mw earthquake is only considered a medium sized earthquake, the quake itself and over fifty aftershocks have caused mass devastation including destruction, injury, and death.

Cries for help are resounding the world over, and many Western countries are organizing efforts to aid Haiti. Mass media sources like CNN and BBC are constantly updating their websites and broadcasts to bring the world the latest on the disaster. Social networking sites like YouTube and Facebook have links to donate to Haiti, and other organizations are accepting donations via the Internet and text message. Organizations providing direct aid include the International Red Cross, the Salvation Army, and the United Nations.

Some looting has taken place, which is not abnormal in the wake of natural disaster. The current problem is not the looting, however. Getting people out of the rubble, and getting them proper medical care is the major issue right now. Haiti is short on necessities including food and water, shelter, medical supplies, and doctors. With no proper place to help people, as all the hospitals are either damaged or full, and with no sign of Haitian nurses and doctors, Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières) and independent medical professionals from around the world have been working in fields and under tents, in makeshift medical centers, performing operations and amputations.

Not only hospitals were damaged. A majority of state buildings collapsed, as have many schools and homes. People crowd the streets, lined with the dead, trying to find their loved ones, some still buried in the rubble, some still alive. Tent cities are being erected in streets and fields, and with the major city Port-au-Prince in shambles, help hasn't even begun to reach other, outer-lying areas even a week after the earthquake hit.

It is gruesome to imagine, let alone to watch on the news and see in pictures, but the horrors of natural disaster include the loss of human life. With an estimated 200,000 lost, the dead are being buried in mass graves. It is reminiscent of some of humanity's worst days, and a startling picture of the brutal state of Haiti. But countless people coming together to help this battered nation in all ways possible is an astonishing picture of the good and hopeful state of our world.

How can you help?

The International Red Cross asks that you donate money to help them rather than send supplies, because supplies won't arrive in time. You can find out more about how to donate by checking out the Red Cross's website at www.redcross.org. For more ways to help, research well-known and respected charities, watch the news, or contact your local Red Cross or Salvation Army.

Source:
www.cnn.com