Earthquake - Haiti Observer Blog

As it was the case for most Haitian institutions, the Haitian Police suffered a severe blow as a result of the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that devastated Haiti.

Haitian Police conceded they had lost their battle to maintain order in Port-au-Prince. Many Haitian gangs have been able to reclaim their old turf since being freed when the national prison collapsed following the earthquake.

In an attempt to maintain order, the Haitian police recently opened fire on looters, killing at least one of them as hundreds of rioters ransacked a market in quake-hit area of Port-au-Prince.

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The singer and dancer Shakira is the most recent artist to lent in Haiti to observe and help after the recent Haiti earthquake disaster

Shakira arrived to Haiti and met up with actor Sean Penn as they visited the Petionville Golf Club, which has become a makeshift camp in Port-au-Prince for the stranded Haitians.

Her mission to visit Haiti is to search for usable land in order to build a new school for the children, many who are homeless and now school less.

Shakira has a foundation called "Barefoot Foundation". Shakira's foundation was created to ensure that every child can continue to exercise their right to have a quality education. Their aim is to improve the education and and quality of life for millions of children denied in order to fulfill their potential.

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In the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake one of the biggest problems was a shortage of clean, drinkable water.

The world has been sending drinking water to Haiti and via plastic containers in large proportion.

Do we really need drinking water in Haiti to be shipped in plastic cans, causing more problem with trash and others.

Haiti needs better drinking water; however it should not be short term. There are several ways we can improve the distributions of drinking water in Haiti, and one of the goals of Haiti reconstruction needs to be focused on clean, drinking water for all Haitians

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The town in Haiti that receives the most damages in the earthquake is not Port au Prince, but Leogane. The city of Leogane is situated about 20 miles outside of Port-au-Prince. The city was near the epicenter of Haiti's catastrophic Jan. 12 earthquake.

Some 80 percent of Leogane was destroyed, but at the Lamb Center Ministries' Children Center Home, they're still singing about joy.

The people of Leogane has little hope that the Haitian Government along with the International community will help rebuilt their city.

The international community delivers USAID-donated cooking oil, flour, peas and bulgur to about 7,000 people a day. Over several days, they provide everyone in camps in Leogane with food rations that should last for a month.

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Cardinal Sean O'Malley, traveled to Haiti to have a firsthand look at the devastation caused by the Jan. 12 Haiti earthquake and tried to offer spiritual comfort to workers and leaders at Catholic institutions still reeling from the disaster.

Cardinal Sean O'Malley leads the delegation organized by the US Conference of Catholic Bishops and others in prayer inside the destroyed cathedral in Port-au-Prince

O'Malley led a Mass in Haitian Creole in a small whitewashed brick room that opened onto a balcony in the Petionville retreat of the Filles de Marie, or Daughters of Mary, a religious order that lost 15 nuns when their residence in Bel Aire collapsed.

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A massive 8.8 earthquake struck Chile in the early morning hours on Saturday. Close to 100 times more powerful than the Haitian earthquake.

On January 12, 2010 at 16:53 a magnitude 7.0 earthquake occurred in Haiti. Televangelist Pat Robertson said immediately after the Haiti earthquake that earthquake-ravaged Haiti has been "cursed" by a "pact to the devil."

"Something happened a long time ago in Haiti, and people might not want to talk about it," he said on Christian Broadcasting Network's "The 700 Club." "They were under the heel of the French. You know, Napoleon III, or whatever. And they got together and swore a pact to the devil. They said, we will serve you if you'll get us free from the French. True story. And so, the devil said, okay it's a deal."

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This is incredible. See the picture for yourself. A 28-year-old Haitian survived the Haiti earthquake for almost one Month. This very lucky Haitian endured nearly four weeks pinned under rubble in a house in Port-au-Prince.

The name of this Haitian who made it alive is Evan Muncie. Doctors said that Evan Muncie was having difficulty comprehending his situation, seeming to believe that he was still trapped in the ruins of the marketplace where, according to his family, he had been buried since January 12. The mother of Evan Muncie, in an interview said "I thought he was dead. But God kept him from dying,".

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Four players in Sunday's Super Bowl XLIV are Haitian Americans, and many other Haitians are looking to follow in their footsteps.

This recent earthquake can only shake but not break us. As Haiti looks to rebuild from January's devastating earthquake, we will continue to make progress in other areas such as sports, education, art, science, technology, medicine and many others.

Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Pierre Garcon and Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma are the latest Haitian Super Stars performing in Super Bowl XLIV. Garcon has been raising money for Haiti through his Helping Hands Foundation.

He hopes to raise $500, 000 so he can distribute food and aid during a personal visit in April.

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Kanaval (Carnival) in Haiti. Due to Haiti Earthquake, the Haitian Kanaval was cancelled this year.

I know this is unpopular, however, I believe that Haiti Kanaval or Carnival should not have been cancelled this year because of Haiti Earthquake.

What is the argument for a Haitian Kanaval (Carnival), specially after over 200,000 people passed away, many more Haitians injured, more than 1,000,000 having no place to stay. Also we can not even think about those who have lost everything: family members, property and more.

The argument for having a Haitian Kanaval or Carnival few months after Haiti Earthquake is simple. We need to move on.

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