The world has watched as Haiti struggles under the terrible trauma of a devastating earthquake Like many developing nations, where the majority of people are often living on the edge of poverty, there are often not enough reserves or contingency plans for these kinds of emergencies. With their health and rescue services already stretched to capacity, it has been eye-opening to see the International community mobilize itself to bring first relief then development to Haiti.
On the Human Development Index Haiti is ranked 149th of 182. It has won for itself the title of being “the poorest country in the western hemisphere”. Haiti has more than its share of natural disasters; in 2008 alone, 800 lives were lost as a result of tropical storm Fay and Hurricanes Gustav, Hanna and Ike.
An earthquake study published in 2006 study by C. DeMets and M. Wiggins-Grandison suggested the possibility of an earthquake hitting Haiti with a magnitude of at least 7.2 on the Richter scale. High level warnings were given by the team.
In January 2010, the predicted earthquake with a 7.0 magnitude devastated the Haiti capital Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas. Major infrastructure – communications, hospitals, road, airports and sea transport - necessary to respond to the emergency was destroyed and brought the island country to its knees. A representative from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs called it “the worst disaster the UN had ever confronted”.
On 24 January, the Haitian government announced that more than 150,000 lives had been lost in the capital city alone, with many thousands still trapped under the rubble. The International Red Cross announced that as many as “3 million” people had been affected by the quake and estimated that two million people were homeless.
Port-au-Prince, according to an international studies professor at the University of Miami, was ill-equipped for such a disaster. Most agree that an earthquake more than any other, because the event is so sudden, leaves little or no time to prepare for the event. Yet four years before the quake it was predicted!
With this in mind post your comment on this week’s poll question:
27% (8)
& most suprisingly,the Church played an active role to help the Haitians.To me it was like a wake up call to return & revere
their Creator.Israelites expirienced more troubles to remember who God is in their lives.Haitians. Forgot who saved them
through rough seas & bondage of slavery.Voila!A big reminder befell them.Of all the global disasters,the Church responded
promptly to this one.