Friday, January 15, 2010

Haiti today

Likening the situation in Haiti to a tragedy is an understatement, and I do so only for lack of better words! In the days that have passed since this catastrophic occurrence, news inputs indicate an unprecedented scale of damage in this already impoverished nation.

Here are some mournful excerpts from the wires in CNN, taken as recently as 10:38 am EST today;

"If help doesn't come quickly, it probably will [get worse]," Agnes Pierre-Louis, manager of the Le Plaza hotel in Port-au-Prince. "We're not hearing anything from the government. We're not seeing any foreign aid yet."

Former US President Clinton told CNN's 'American Morning' this - "Think how you would feel if you lost everything? You were wandering around streets at night, they were all dark; you were tripping over bodies, living and dead, and you didn't have water to drink or food to eat. That's what we're facing now. That's what we've got to get through now."

"Water is the key thing," said Ian Bray, senior emergency press officer for the humanitarian agency Oxfam. "You can go for some time without food, but you can't go all that long without water. What is the real killer, certainly in refugee situations, is the lack of decent sanitation, because people produce human waste and that, if it's not disposed of safely, is a huge risk to health."

Across town, an 11-year-old girl pleaded for water and screamed in agony as a group of people painstakingly tried to lift a piece of metal off her right leg. After sunset, they managed to free her.

The smell of dead bodies wafted in the air after two days under a tropical sun, and throughout the city people covered their noses.

Diesel fuel is selling on the black market in Port-au-Prince for $25 a gallon. It usually sells for $3 a gallon.

I pray for those who have been affected by this tragic happening and hope that recovery is fast and all permeating to ensure that relief, food and medical supplies reach all those who are in need!

Footnotes:

News room source : CNN

21 comments:

  1. its very much true..
    we can think of the pain of loosin everything.But to feel it is a different course.
    i too join in with you praying..

    ReplyDelete
  2. Its such a disaster,a catastrophe so to say.And the country is just finding it difficult to stand up now.I wish the world leaders paid a lot more regard to their pleas and helped haiti come out of this phase..

    Prayers

    Nikhil

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yes its very sad in Haiti :(
    I was just looking at the Dutch news on TV !!!!
    I have donate money only by the Dutch red cross ;)
    (I can trust that, I give there also my blood ... :-)
    Great post Rakesh !!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Rahul

    Indeed, a very tragic situation!

    Hope recovery is fast!

    Rakesh

    ReplyDelete
  5. Nikhil

    Yes, this has flattened all of Haiti and the international community must act soon!

    Rakesh

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anya

    Am glad that you have contributed to the relief effort!

    Hats off to folks like you!

    Rakesh

    ReplyDelete
  7. Vimuuuu

    Yes, sadness all the way!

    Keep them in your prayers!

    Rakesh

    ReplyDelete
  8. Yes, keeep recording calamities, tragedies...find different better words -- it could be a growth into better humanity!

    and keep killing people in thoughts and deeds....thats what we "humans" are doomed to do on this earth!

    and in between people like Anya. and some kindhearted may contribute to relief efforts -- I would also give;

    well, you get my mood now....don't bother too much,

    wishes,
    devika

    ReplyDelete
  9. Devika Chechi

    Yes, I completely understand what you intend to say!

    Its sad that we, the responsibles for a good social structure, do so much to destroy the very system that we envisage!

    Some contradiction - perhaps innate, perhaps acquired!

    Rakesh

    ReplyDelete
  10. Thank God you understand :)

    Yes, contradiction -- mine is innate, can't do anything about it...but then there are the great teachers of life out there to reinforce it!

    anyway, thats not the issue here...Pray that life is back to normal in Haiti soon,

    wishes,
    devika

    ReplyDelete
  11. Perhaps its innate for a lot of us Chechi and from that anomaly life may become better in the future!

    Yes, a lot of prayers and efforts needed to restore life in Haiti

    Rakesh

    ReplyDelete
  12. Life may better, as far as we learn to accept life as it is....the underlying urge to change things -- and each of us defining and wanting change in the way we think -- would only complicate things....because none of us are here to live our life on other's terms --

    wishes,
    devika

    ReplyDelete
  13. but yes, if there is a kind and friendly acceptance of people and lives as they are --it could be better --

    wishes,
    devika

    ReplyDelete
  14. Indeed very sad... Tragic is all that we can say... Pray is all we can do... :(

    ReplyDelete
  15. Devika Chechi

    Yes, the human ego that makes the entire bunch feel superior and the custodians of the place that we are part of, is truly the problem, coupled with, as you said, the urge to change - which I believe is a result of a high degree of insecurity!

    Why can't we leave things as they are? Answer - commercially driven objective, greed rather!

    Sigh!

    Rakesh

    ReplyDelete
  16. Isaam

    Yes, my friend - tragedy of such magnitude requires a huge deal of prayer and effort to be overcome!

    Rakesh

    ReplyDelete
  17. it is really of a huge disaster for the mankind, alas no big noise is made because Haiti is a marginalized country

    ReplyDelete
  18. Prabhu Anna

    Indeed an unparalleled tragedy and something that has not been adequately responded to considering the international status of Haiti!

    Hypocrisies of international politics and diplomacy!

    Rakesh

    ReplyDelete
  19. It is a huge tragedy indeed :( but no body can stop natural calamities.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Deepak

    Quite true - no one can avert a natural calamity!

    one can only pray and hope that they don't reoccur often!

    Rakesh

    ReplyDelete