海地首都太子港12日遭遇規模7.0的地震摧毀,世界各國與援助機構正火速趕往馳援。
搜救隊伍在倒塌的建物殘垣中仔細搜尋,而海地紅十字會目前估計死亡人數介於45,000人至55,000人之間。
海地官員13日推估死亡人數可能達10萬至50萬,但目前任何傷亡報告都未經證實。至少3百萬人已經遭受這場災難所影響。
由於許多政府建築倒塌,海地政府難以運作,議會亦嚴重受損,議長與部份議員受困其中。
海地總統普雷華(Rene Preval)與其妻子逃離毀損的總統府而生還,總理貝爾利弗(Jean-Max Bellerive)亦生還,但僅有少數政府官員取得聯繫。
位於克里斯多佛飯店的聯合國駐海地總部倒塌,聯合國發言人表示,至少4名警察、19名士兵與13名職員喪生,超過56名人員受傷,聯合國海地穩定特派團團長安納比(Hedi Annabi)也在此震災中罹難。
世界衛生組織表示,海地有8間醫院受損或全毀,鄰國多明尼加則有2間醫院受損。世衛組織成員佳伍德(Paul Garwood)
說:「對原本已然脆弱的海地人民、社會與經濟,我們害怕這場地震的打擊將格外具有破壞性。」 一位法國紅十字會員工則表示,尚存的醫院卻已將大門關上。「在混亂中,醫院沒有任何餘力容納其他傷患。」他說:「許許多多的傷患散佈太子港街頭,周圍則是屍體。在市郊設置醫院並建立醫療團隊將至關重要。」
海地目前所有通訊系統都中斷,國際電信聯盟與聯合國資通信科技專門機構已部署40隻可攜式衛星連結設備與1個基地台,用以重新建立基本的通訊聯結,並調遣另外60組寬頻設備配署專業的操作人員。
太子港的機場受損,塔台在地震中震倒,但美國海上防衛隊已於13日建立起臨時塔台,使飛機能載運賑災物資與人員降落。
14日上午飛機開始起降機場,但主管單位下午對軍機以外的班機關閉太子港機場,使得以私人貨機運補救災物資的工作暫停。
美國總統歐巴馬於14日呼籲美國民眾發揮「同情心」,並說明他已將幫助海地自嚴重地震中復原一事,當作美國各政府單位的首要工作。
美國國務卿希拉蕊則取消當週的紐澳之行,返回華盛頓,組織並協調美國救援工作。
Nations and aid organizations from around the world are rushing relief to Haiti, where the capital Port-au-Prince was devastated by a magnitude 7.0 earthquake Tuesday.
As search and rescue teams comb the ruins of collapsed buildings, the Haitian Red Cross is now estimating the numbers of dead at between 45,000 and 50,000 people.
Yesterday, Haitian officials estimated the death toll at somewhere between 100,000 and half a million people, but no casualty reports are confirmed. At least three million people have been affected by the calamity.
In Haiti, the government is barely functioning as many government buildings, including the Parliament, were heavily damaged, trapping the senate president and a number of other lawmakers alive inside.
Haitian President Rene Preval and his wife got out of the damaged presidential palace alive, and Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive is alive, but few other government officials are available.
The United Nations headquarters in the Christopher Hotel collapsed. At least four police, 19 soldiers and 13 civilian staff members, including chief of the UN mission in Haiti, Hedi Annabi, have died, with at least 56 more injured, a UN spokesman said.
The World Health Organization said eight hospitals were damaged or destroyed in Haiti and two damaged in neighboring Dominican Republic. "We fear that the impact of this earthquake will be particularly devastating to the already existing vulnerability of Haiti's people, society and economy," WHO's Paul Garwood told reporters.
A French Red Cross staffer says what hospitals still exist have closed their doors. "Taken by storm, they do not have any more capacity to accomodate others wounded," he said. "Tens and tens of injured strew the streets of Port-au-Prince, among the corpses. The installation of hospital of countryside and mobile teams of doctors thus will be vital."
Haiti has no communications system at this time, but ITU, the UN specialized agency for information and communication technology, has deployed 40 portable satellite uplinks and a base station to re-establish basic communication links, and is dispatching another 60 units with broadband facility along with experts to operate them.
The airport has been damaged and its control tower was knocked down in the quake, although the U.S. Coast Guard established a temporary control tower Wednesday so that planes bringing in relief supplies and personnel could land.
Planes were beginning to arrive this morning, but by afternoon authorities shut down the Port-au-Prince airport to all but military flights, halting efforts by relief agencies to get supplies into Haiti by private cargo planes.
At the White House, President Barack Obama today called for "compassion" from Americans, saying that he has made helping Haiti to recover from the crippling earthquake the top priority of every U.S. government agency.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton canceled her trip to New Zealand and Australia this week and returned to Washington to organize and coordinate the U.S. relief effort.
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