Posted on 01/13/2010 11:59:41 PM PST by myknowledge
Australia pledged $10 million in aid to Haiti today as US officials said the death toll from yesterday's huge earthquake could rival the loss of life from the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami.
As aftershocks continued to shake the devastated capital Port-au-Prince, residents tried to rescue people trapped under rubble, clawing at chunks of concrete with bare hands.
Tens of thousands wandered dazed and sobbing in the chaotic, broken streets, hoping desperately for assistance.
One young man yelled at reporters in English: "Too many people are dying. We need international help ... no emergency, no food, no phone, no water, no nothing."
Bodies were visible all around the hilly city: under rubble, lying beside roads, and being loaded into trucks.
President says death toll between 30,000 and 50,000 But PM says toll could be up to 100,000 Red Cross says up to 3 million killed, injured or homeless Massive aid appeal underway
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who cancelled her upcoming trip to Australia today to concentrate on the crisis, has compared the devastation to the Asian tsunami which killed almost 230,000 people in 2004.
"This is going to be one of the highest in terms of loss of life in recent years, as far as we can tell," Ms Clinton said.
"The Indian Ocean tsunami was such a terrible tragedy and with such high loss of life. This will be a very high loss of life as well."
The Federal Government says $5 million of Australian aid will be made available immediately.
There had been concerns for one Australian who was thought to be working with the United Nations in Haiti, however Foreign Minister Stephen Smith has now confirmed that he is safe.
Mr Smith says within the last hour Australian officials have received word through the man's family that he is safe.
The UN headquarters in Port-au-Prince was flattened by the quake and this morning a UN spokesman told the ABC that around 150 staff members were still unaccounted for.
There are no reports that any Australians have been injured or killed.
An American Red Cross worker in Port-au-Prince says the city is in chaos as people continue to dig for loved ones.
"I was in the streets last night all night and walking around people are scared, they're sleeping in the streets ... it just highlights the fear that everyone has and the desperation at this point," Matt Marek said.
"Seeing thousands and thousands of people bundled up under light bed sheets, huddling together for a little bit of warmth and comfort, it was a very unreal scene.
"People have nowhere to go... a lot of people don't have home to go back to."
Former US president Bill Clinton, who is the UN's special envoy to Haiti, says if people want to help, they should donate money to a legitimate charity rather than sending food or other supplies.
"We do not have the logistical and organisational capacity right now to handle a lot of things," he said.
"So the most important thing individuals can do who care is to send cash - even if it's a dollar, or two dollars."
Mr Clinton says the situation is heartbreaking.
"We need more helicopters here to deal with the fact that a lot of the roads are impassable," he said.
"We're going to have to move some earthmoving equipment. We may have to bring in some floating power generator.
"But we're getting there. The number one thing we have to do for the next few days is concentrate on the basics."
My comments to you were not about dollars, they were about sentiment.
My post was about giving money not sentiment.
I donated to Samaritan’s Purse last night and regularly donate to Life Outreach International. Both organizations run by very good people.
We have a block wall around our yard. The blocks were set with concrete - and rebar.
I suspect my wall would last better than their palace in an earthquake.
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