EARTHQUAKE IN HAITI

JAN 12, 2010By Hooria Said, Laiba Malik, Dua Tariq, Mariam Mehmood

Geography

VIII

Supervised

By: Ms.

Maleeha

Beacon House

School System

SBGR

Introduction

Haiti is and island

located in the

Caribbean.

Capital: Port-au-

Prince

Population:

8,400,000

Language: French

Religion: Catholic,

Protestantism &

Voodoo

Haiti , January 2010

Tuesday afternoon, January 12th, the worst earthquake in 200 years - 7.0 in magnitude -struck less than ten miles from the Caribbean city of Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The initial quake was later followed by twelve aftershocks greater than magnitude 5.0. Structures of all kinds were damaged or collapsed, from shantytown homes to national landmarks. It is still very early in the recovery effort, but millions are likely displaced, and thousands are feared dead as rescue teams from all over the world are now descending on Haiti to help where they are able.

MAP…….

Medical attention after

destruction Emergency workers are

still trying to save the lives of those trapped and buried.

The main priority will be to provide food, water , healthcare and shelter to survivors.

Trócaire’s Director, Justin Kilcullen stated ‘We need to ensure that we respond not only to the material needs of those affected but also to concerns around safety and security of the most vulnerable’.

Haiti: Context

• Haiti is the poorest country in the America.

• Annual income per person is $560.

• It is ranked 146th out of the 177 countries in the world on United Nations Human Development Index.

• 78% of people were already living on less than $2 per day before the disaster.

• Haiti is also one of the most disaster prone countries in the world due to its high latitude tropics, mountainous terrain and severely degraded environment.

• Nearly every year brings extreme climate shocks. In particular flash foods as recent as September 2008; four consecutive storms and hurricanes which killed 800 people and another 800,000 also affected.

• Take Action

• Check out www.trocaire.org for

background information on Haiti before the earthquake occurred.

Hold a classroom debate on the following topic:

‘It is more important to reduce poverty around the world than to raise money for disaster relief’.