In the wake of the largest earthquake in 200 years to hit the nation of Haiti, World Help is already working with its long-time partners on the ground in Port-Au-Prince to provide aid and medical relief to those who have been devastated by this 7.0 magnitude earthquake.
Preliminary reports indicate that there could be as many as 100,000 casualties. Reports of men and women finding the bodies of family members in the rubble continue to come in.
Since the initial quake, at least 28 aftershocks have hit Haiti, some above a 5.0 magnitude. Most of Port-Au-Prince has been destroyed, leaving many of its 2 million inhabitants homeless. Because 8 out of 10 people in Haiti already live in poverty, this is an even greater catastrophe.
World Help currently sponsors several hundred children in Haiti and although our communication into this country is very limited, every effort is being made to make sure the children are safe and have all they need.
World Help has a long history of helping the people of Haiti. In fact, two containers with $2.5 million worth of medical supplies, medicine, and shoes arrived at the wharf in Port-Au-Prince three days ago and are waiting to be unloaded. A third container with food staples is on the way and should arrive shortly. With only one working crane in port, the supplies will be unloaded as soon as possible. While three containers will go a long way in alleviating the pain and suffering that is going on right now, many more will be needed to help restore the people of Haiti.
In the next two weeks 20 more containers valued at over 20 million dollars can impact 250,000 families. We are currently working to raise the money needed to ship these containers.
With millions of dollars worth of humanitarian aid and disaster relief supplies already on hand in Haiti, World Help is positioned to assist the thousands of people who find themselves facing the most desperate circumstances imaginable. Our partners in Haiti are helping to assess the need and make arrangements to get the aid and supplies delivered immediately.
World Help is currently raising money to:
- Distribute the supplies already in port
- Ship much-needed medical, food, and clothing supplies
- Set up temporary hospitals and emergency food centers
- Purchase survival kits, water, and food for those who have been devastated
I will keep you posted on what we are doing. Please help me get the word out. It is devastating to think that so many of our friends and partners may be buried under the rubble. Once the bodies start to decay Haiti will not only be faced by a lack of food, electricity, and contaminated water . . . but also disease.
I’ve been asking myself all day what would Jesus do. It’s time the world helped Haiti.