Several humanitarian crises developed one year ago when a massive earthquake devastated Port-au-Prince and other communities in Haiti. Some survivors stayed to receive emergency assistance while countless others fled the country. The plight of these survivors continues today, even a year after tremors leveled the Haitian capital.
Haiti Earthquake Facts
According to the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) in the United Kingdom, the impacts of the Haiti earthquake were devastating. Some of the Haiti earthquake facts that they compiled in July 2010 include:
- Two million people currently live in the most affected area of Port au Prince.
- At least 220,000 people lost their lives.
- Minimum 1,500,000 were homeless.
- 19 million cubic meters of rubble and debris remain in Port au Prince. This is enough to fill a solid line of shipping containers stretching from London to Beirut.
- 1,500,000 people living in makeshift camps including over 100,000 others were at critical risk from storms and flooding.
- Over 1,100 camps were built and 54 of those were home to 5,000 people or more. (One year later, more than 500 camps still exist in Port au Prince.)
- Approximately 5,000 schools were damaged or destroyed.
Canadian Red Cross in Haiti
When the Haiti earthquake hit, countless people, businesses and governments stepped up to the plate to help out. According to the Canadian Red Cross 2010 Haiti Response Financial Update almost $200 million was raised. As of November 30, 2010 the Canadian Red Cross committed $117 million to certain projects. The breakdown of monies that have been spent are as follows:
- Contributions paid to the International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC) $32,340,000
- Contributions paid to the International Committee of the Red Cross $304,000
- Emergency Response Unit Hospital $3,046,000
- Emergency Relief Items $2,028,000
- Deployment of relief and recovery staff $1,077,000
- Outbreak response – cholera $460,000
- IFRC shelter program $21,770,000
- Canadian Red Cross shelter program in Jacmel and Leogane $15,578,000
- Hurricane preparation activities $3,030,000
- Other recovery programming and support $9,848,000
American Red Cross
The American Red Cross published Haiti Earthquake Relief One Year Report. It states that they have received $479 million in donations to date but it does not indicate a monetary breakdown of dollar values of what was spent. A pie chart indicates that as of January 12, 2011, $245 million has been spent. The chart breakdown is as follows:
- Shelter 30%
- Food and emergency shelters 26%
- Water and sanitation 15%
- Health 13%
- Livelihood and Host Families 10%
- Disaster Risk Reduction 6%
Haiti Earthquake Victims Mourn
On January 11, 2011, Haiti began two days of remembrance ceremonies to honor the nearly quarter of a million people who lost their lives in the earthquake. The main event scheduled is an open-air Catholic Mass to be held on January 12 by the ruins of the Port-au-Prince cathedral, which collapsed during the earthquake. The remains of that church have not been cleared away. At 4:53 pm on the 12th, Haitians will observe a minute of silence and will release white balloons.
Karen Stephenson - Karen has written for several newspapers and print media in addition to many online publications. She holds a B.A. in English and an ...
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