On Tuesday 12 January 2010 at 4:53pm, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake rocked southern Haiti just when people were preparing to leave work to go home to their families. Sadly, thousands of these individuals will never see their loved ones again as family members and friends are missing in the rubble and 50,000 to 100,000 people are already feared dead.

The quake’s epicentre hit just 10 miles west of Porte-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital where the population is about 2 million. 33 aftershocks ranging in magnitude from 4.2 to 5.9 continued to rock the island after the initial shake.

UN and Red Cross workers report that approximately 60 to 80 percent of the buildings in Port-au-Prince were destroyed or badly damaged. About 3 million people are left homeless and injured and in need of emergency aid. Many of the Haitians are living on sidewalks or in parks and plazas.  As for those who have died, local radio stations are broadcasting messages for people to put their dead out in the street to be picked up by trucks and taken to a mass grave. Relief workers warn the death toll will rise quickly if tens of thousands of injured do not get first aid in soon.

With the country’s airports and water ports damaged by the quake, aid is slowly makings its way to the victims who have not had food or water since Tuesday's devastating earthquake; worries are growing about what could happen in the next few days if aid does not get in their hands quickly.

ABOUT HAITI
• Located between Cuba and Puerto Rico in the Caribbean 
• Population is nearly 10,000,000 people
• About 5,000 Muslims live in Haiti
• Official language is French
• Capital is Port-au-Prince
• Haiti is one of poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere
• 80% of the population lives below the poverty line
• Most Haitians live on less than $2 a day
• More than two-thirds of the labour force do not have formal employment
• Haiti is one of the most densely populated and least developed countries in the Western Hemisphere

HAITI EARTHQUAKE RELIEF FUND
The World Federation is launching the Haiti Earthquake Relief Fund. Haiti is living a great humanitarian crisis and The World Federation is appealing to all Shia Muslim communities around the world to donate generously.

The World Federation is working on proposals which focus its relief efforts in Haiti on the medium to long term aid.  Immediate assistance for basic provisions such as food, water, clothing and shelter is already being provided by many Governmental and charitable organizations.  Once these proposals are finalized, we will share them with the rest of the community through our newswire and website.

The World Federation is deeply distraught and concerned about the devastation and loss of lives as a result of the 7.0 magnitude earthquake. In this month of Muharram in which Imam Husayn (AS), sacrificed everything he had to champion the rights of humanity, let us unite to bring respite to the people of Haiti.