Haiti Earthquake is Catastrophic with Widespread Casualties

The Haitian capital is reeling from the effects of a devastating earthquake that has left widespread casualties and thousands of people homeless. The earthquake that hit Haiti on Tuesday had a magnitude of 7.3 and was followed by at least two aftershocks. There is widespread panic and reports of bodies in the streets along with many buildings, including a hospital and the National Palace, in ruins.

The city is apparently in total darkness with widespread power outages and people in the streets pleading for medical help. In an already impoverished country, this disaster leaves many people helpless.

Countless buildings have been destroyed and Haiti TV has reported that this includes the parliament building, the Finance Ministry, the Public Works Ministry, the Palace of Justice and Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Port-au-Prince, and the national cathedral.

In addition, the main United Nations building in Port-au-Prince collapsed. An unknown number of personnel at the UN building were noted as missing.

After the earthquake, all land telephones and cell phones were down in Port-au-Prince, a city populated by almost 2 million people.

The U.S. on Tuesday was dispatching disaster rescue teams to Haiti. President Barack Obama ordered U.S. officials to start preparing to deliver humanitarian assistance. As of late Tuesday, the Red Cross earmarked $200,000 for immediate assistance and many other organizations are pledging their help.

A video of some of the aftermath of the devastating earthquake in Haiti can be viewed here.

If you would like to help, you can make a donation on the American Red Cross site.

Written by Cheryl Phillips
HULIQ.com

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