Governments and aid groups from around the world rushed to
dispatch relief workers and supplies to Haiti today, where a
devastating earthquake left thousands in need.
US President Barack Obama sent military troops and an air and
sea flotilla to speed earthquake relief, and governments from
China to Venezuela promised help.
The massive effort to alleviate the spiralling toll of death
and destruction kicked in as the devastation from Tuesday's
magnitude-7.0 quake revealed itself. Haitian officials
predicted a death total exceeding 100,000.
The United Nations has released $US10 million from its
emergency funds, even as UN workers and peacekeeping troops
on the island nation at the time of the quake struggled with
their own losses. The UN headquarters building collapsed, and
the reported death toll there was mounting.
"We'll be using whatever roads are passable to get aid to
Port-au-Prince, and if possible we'll bring helicopters in,"
said Emilia Casella, a spokeswoman for the UN food agency in
Geneva.
Its 200 staff in Haiti were trying to deliver high-energy
biscuits and other supplies, despite looting and the threat
of violence in a nation long plagued by lawlessness.
The Red Cross estimated that 3 million people will require
aid, ranging from shelter to food and clean water, and said
many Haitians could need relief for a full year.
"There are many, many people trapped in the rubble," said
Paul Conneally, spokesman for the International Federation of
Red Cross and Red Crescent societies. "We're not optimistic
at the moment."
The American Red Cross had run out of medical supplies on the
ground in Haiti, a spokesman said today.
The small amount of medical equipment and supplies that were
available to Haiti had been distributed, spokesman Eric
Porterfield said. More was being sent, but he said he did not
know when they would be arriving.
Across the globe, governments and aid groups were sending
sniffer dogs to search for victims. They also were sending
food and tons of emergency medical aid.
The sheer number of dead bodies was expected to pose a
problem. The World Health Organisation said it had sent
specialists to help clear the city of corpses, and the
International Red Cross was sending a plane loaded mainly
with body bags.
Sixty-five rubble-clearing specialists and six sniffer dogs
left France today, while Spain dispatched three planeloads of
rescuers and 100 tons of tents, blankets and cooking kits.
Israel was sending in an elite Army rescue unit of engineers
and doctors. A military reconnaissance team from Canada was
arriving aboard a C-130 transport plane to assess the need
for mosquito nets, basic household goods, tents and
sanitation packages.
One of the first teams expected to arrive in Haiti was a
37-member search-and-rescue unit from Iceland, along with 10
tons of rescue equipment.
Cuba already had field hospitals on the ground when the quake
struck. The Irish telecommunications company Digicel said it
would donate $US5 million to aid agencies and help repair
Haiti's damaged phone network.
Islamic Relief USA, Americas largest Muslim relief
organisation, said it would fly a $US1 million shipment of
aid, to be co-ordinated with The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints.
The United States set in motion a sweeping military response
that included ships, helicopters, transport planes and a
2000-member Marine unit.
Gen. Douglas Fraser, head of US Southern Command, said one of
the Navy's large amphibious ships probably would head to
Haiti with a Marine expeditionary unit aboard. An Army
brigade, which would include several thousand soldiers, from
the 82nd Airborne Division based at Fort Bragg, North
Carolina, was standing by for possible deployment, he said.
Fraser said it was possible that some military personnel
would aid in security, bolstering Haiti's beleaguered police,
but final decisions on their use had not yet been made.
A Southern Command assessment team was flying to Haiti. The
initial contingent of 2000 Marines could pitch in with both
emergency aid distribution and law enforcement in support of
a small UN peacekeeping force already there, Fraser said.
The aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson also was heading
from Norfolk, Virginia, and was expected to arrive tomorrow.
Obama put newly appointed USAID administrator Rajiv Shah in
overall charge of the American effort. He said the initial
response would concentrate on search and rescue operations
but would also look at longer-term humanitarian needs.
Two 72-member American urban search and rescue teams were on
their way, transported by military and civilian airlift.
"The goal of the relief effort in the first 72 hours will be
very focused on saving lives," Shah told reporters.
Meanwhile, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton cut
short an extended trip to the Asia-Pacific to deal with the
crisis in Haiti.
In Haiti, Doctors Without Borders said it had treated
hundreds in tents near where its Martissant health center was
damaged. The injuries included broken bones and some severe
burns from domestic gas containers that exploded in collapsed
buildings.
It said hundreds more Haitians were being treated in tents
elsewhere. Canada planned an initial donation of $US4.8
million, with more aid to flow after reports to Ottawa by
military reconnaissance team.
China pitched in with a pledge of $US1 million, while the
European Commission has approved $US4.37 million. European
Union member states Spain, The Netherlands, Italy, and
Germany promised millions more.
Even as donations began piling up, the FBI warned Internet
users to be wary of e-mail messages seeking donations in the
aftermath of the quake.
People who want to send money or assistance should contribute
to known organisations and should be careful not to respond
to unsolicited e-mails, officials said.
