Haiti Disaster - PLEASE help Haiti earthquake victims

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A mighty earthquake rocked the small, impoverished island nation of Haiti on Tuesday 12th January 2010, collapsing a hospital, the presidential palace and other buildings, triggering massive panic and claiming an as-yet uncounted number of lives -- perhaps thousands.

Screams for help emanated from felled buildings, and chaos reigned. One diplomat called the quake a "catastrophe" in one of the countries least equipped to handle it. More than 30 aftershocks have been recorded.
The devastating earthquake has left an estimated 3 million people in need of emergency aid, a Red Cross official said today. The aid organization said Haiti's disaster relief teams were "completely overwhelmed."

France's foreign minister says the head of the U.N. mission in Haiti appears to have died in the earthquake.

Bernard Kouchner said the French ambassador had visited the devastated U.N. headquarters building in Port-au-Prince and said "everyone who was in the building is apparently dead" including Tunisian diplomat Hedi Annabi Annabi. The U.N. has maintained a peacekeeping force in Haiti since 2004.

As night fell on the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince, a city of 2 million, reports emerged of extensive destruction; homes and buildings a shambles; trapped, seriously injured victims; and residents sleeping in streets.

Tsunami alerts were issued for Cuba, the Bahamas and much of the Caribbean, and numerous aftershocks were reported.

The quake, one of the most powerful ever in the region, measured a preliminary magnitude of 7.0. It was centered about 10 miles west of Port-au-Prince and was shallow, just five miles deep. It struck about 4:53 p.m., hitting one of the city's most densely populated areas.

All of that augured vast damage and overwhelming casualties. Electricity in the capital was out Tuesday night, telephone communications were down, and the airport was closed.

"We are hearing of sheer devastation," said Caryl Stern, president of the U.S. Fund for UNICEF, which has 100 workers in Haiti. UNICEF employees in Port-au-Prince reported seeing a school collapse with children inside.

"It's horrible," Stern said. "The worst earthquake in such a poor region. You are starting from behind the eight ball."

Photos emerging from Haiti showed buildings in rubble and houses tumbled down ravines. Thousands of people gathered in public squares late into the night, singing hymns, the Associated Press reported.

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