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#363964 01/12/10 06:08 PM
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A strong earthquake hit the impoverished country of Haiti on Tuesday afternoon, where a hospital collapsed and people were screaming for help. Other buildings also were damaged.

The earthquake had a preliminary magnitude of 7.0 and was centered about 14 miles (22 kilometers) west from the capital of Port-au-Prince, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

An Associated Press videographer saw the wrecked hospital in nearby Petionville, and a U.S. government official reported seeing houses that had tumbled into a ravine.

No further details on any causualties or other damage were immediately available.

"Everybody is just totally, totally freaked out and shaken," said Henry Bahn, a visiting official with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. "The sky is just gray with dust."

Bahn said he was walking to his hotel room when the ground began to shake.

"I just held on and bounced across the wall," he said. "I just hear a tremendous amount of noise and shouting and screaming in the distance."

Bahn said there were rocks strewn all over the place and he saw a ravine where several homes had been built. "It's just full of collapsed walls and rubble and barbed wire," he said.

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Jesse - Thanks for your reporting. You are always ahead of the ball. This bodes to be a disaster. As a person with family there, I am watching this closely. Will keep you posted with any direct info . . .

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This group always seem to be on the ball in these situations. click here for Operation USA

This is heartbreaking. Haiti has suffered so much in recent history.


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Now we should pray...

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My cousin and her children live/work in Port au Prince. They also have a home here. Unfortunately they were in Haiti yesterday. Learned late last night that they are alive, very traumatized and camping outside in their yard. They probably know they are lucky to have survived - but this is the beginning of a new kind suffering that probably only soldiers of war would understand.
It's cold there too, and nobody can stay inside because they are afraid that buildings will fall down.

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Hundreds feared dead in Haiti earthquake

A 7.1 earthquake off Haiti has caused major damage and death in the poor Caribbean island and resulted in the Northern Caribbean being placed under a tsunami watch. While the country is without electrical supply due to the widespread damages, it is believe that by dawn, death tolls will rise as rescue efforts intensify. According to various streaming news outlets in Haiti, screams and cries for help could be heard as a hospital and other buildings collapsed, burying people under the rubble.
Residents reported seeing houses crumbling on the streets, while others told reports on site that they had seen other homes falling into a ravine during the 4:53 pm quake which was centered about 10 miles south-west of Port-au-Prince. The magnitude of the tremor was initially indicated to be 7.3 but was soon after revised to 7.0. It was followed by a 5.9 magnitude aftershock and another of 5.5 magnitudes. The quake triggered a tsunami watch which is in effect for Haiti, Cuba, the Dominican Republic and the Bahamas, but the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said there was no indication that a tsunami had been generated. The Center added that experts believe that areas further from the epicenter could experience small sea level changes and strong or unusual coastal currents.
According to multiple news report, the presidential palace in Port-Au-Prince collapsed and many other public buildings across the capital were destroyed. Reports from Haiti is that other structures that collapsed include those housing the finance ministry, the ministry of public works, the ministry of communication and culture, the parliament building and a cathedral in the capital.
A Miami Herald journalist stated in a report that President Rene Preval has escaped unhurt, but no official word has come out from Haiti. The earthquake also destroyed the headquarters of the United Nations’ peacekeeping mission on the island.
For its part the President of the United States of America, Barrack Obama issued a statement saying the US "stood ready" to help the people of Haiti and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says the US will provide both military and civilian aid.
Haiti is the poorest country in the Western hemisphere, and one of the poorest of the world.
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For those of you who know our Mata Grande/ Middle Island neighbors LInda Percy and her two children Jesse and Kiah: They presently live/work in Port au Prince. They are alive and uninjured.

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Guatemalan earthquake Monday
Earthquake Details

Magnitude 4.9
Date-Time
Monday, January 11, 2010 at 23:30:45 UTC
Monday, January 11, 2010 at 05:30:45 PM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location 15.529°N, 88.652°W
Depth 10 km (6.2 miles) set by location program
Region GUATEMALA
Distances 20 km (15 miles) SW of Puerto Barrios, Guatemala
70 km (45 miles) W of San Pedro Sula, Honduras
225 km (140 miles) ENE of GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala
1200 km (740 miles) ESE of MEXICO CITY, D.F., Mexico
Location Uncertainty horizontal +/- 8.7 km (5.4 miles); depth fixed by location program
Parameters NST= 71, Nph= 73, Dmin=220.4 km, Rmss=1.03 sec, Gp=137°,
M-type=body wave magnitude (Mb), Version=6
Source
USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)
Event ID us2010ribl

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Americans trying to locate family members in Haiti should telephone the State Department at 888-407-4747.

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Belize responds to Haiti disaster

On Tuesday, January 12, 2010 the country of Haiti experienced a 7.0-magnitude earthquake, reportedly the country’s worst in two centuries. The quake struck about 10 miles, south-west of the capital, Port-au-Prince and was quickly followed by two aftershocks of 5.9 and 5.5 magnitude.

The catastrophe has resulted in the death of many Haitian and foreign citizens including UN peace keeping personnel who perished with the collapse of the UN headquarters in the country. The Red Cross reports that possibly three million people have been affected.

The Government of Belize is closely monitoring the situation in Haiti to identify how best to coordinate its assistance to the relief and reconstruction efforts of our CARICOM sister nation, including a possible collective approach with the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CEDEMA) and the US Southern Command based in Honduras
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