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Haiti Earthquake

Caribbean Latin America News
Chile was ready for quake, Haiti wasn't
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti � The earthquake in Chile was far stronger than the one that struck Haiti last month � yet the death toll in this Caribbean nation is magnitudes higher. The reasons are simple. Chile is wealthier and infinitely better prepared, with strict building codes, robust emergency response and a long history of handling seismic catastrophes. No living Haitian had experienced a quake at home when the Jan. 12 disaster crumbled their poorly constructed buildings. And Chile was relatively lucky this time....
Feb 28, 2010 - 12:47:43 AM

Caribbean Latin America News
.Huge quake hits Chile; tsunami threatens Pacific
TALCA, Chile � One of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded struck Chile on Saturday, toppling homes, collapsing bridges and plunging trucks into the fractured earth. A tsunami threatened every nation around the Pacific Ocean � roughly a quarter of the globe. Chileans near the epicenter were tossed about by the magnitude-8.8 quake as if shaken by a giant. At least 147 people were killed, according to Carmen Fernandez, director of the National Emergency Agency. The quake shook buildings in Argentina's capital of Buenos Aires, and was felt as far away as Sao Paulo in Brazil � 1,800 miles (2,900 kilometers)
Feb 27, 2010 - 3:00:47 PM

Haiti
All Haitian 'orphans' with Baptists had parents
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti � There is not one orphan among the 33 children that a U.S. Baptist group tried to take from Haiti in a do-it-yourself rescue mission following a devastating earthquake, The Associated Press has determined. In the rubble-riddled Citron slum where 13 of the children lived, parents who gave their children away confirmed Saturday that each one of the youngsters had living parents. Their testimony echoed that of parents in the mountain town of Callabas, outside of Port-au-Prince, who told the AP on Feb. 3 that desperation and blind faith led them to hand over 20 children to the
Feb 21, 2010 - 1:57:23 AM

Haiti
Haiti president pleads for shelter for quake's homeless
PORT-AU-PRINCE (AFP) � Haitian President Rene Preval on Saturday pleaded for the world to urgently help provide shelter for some 1.2 million people left homeless by last month's devastating earthquake. In comments after meeting visiting Chilean President Michelle Bachelet on the grounds of the destroyed National Palace, Preval warned that the heavy rain season, which begins around May, posed a major risk to those without shelter. "It is urgent today that those who are in the streets, exposed to the storms ... find shelter right away," said Preval, who added that his country did not have the resources to do
Feb 21, 2010 - 1:22:04 AM

Haiti
Haiti PM: Gov't to take land for temporary camps
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti � Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive says the Haitian government will appropriate land to build temporary camps for earthquake victims. The decision, announced in an interview with The Associated Press, is potentially explosive in a country where a small elite owns most of the land in and around the capital. That elite, a traditionally corrupting force in Haitian politics, has the power to bring down the government. The government owns some land but not enough, Bellerive said in an interview Thursday, meaning he has no choice but to take over private terrain.
Feb 19, 2010 - 7:27:12 PM

Haiti
.Haiti bans construction using quarry sand
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti � Haiti's government is banning a commonly used sand from structural construction in an attempt to improve building safety. The public works ministry issued a notice Sunday warning that the use of "La Boule"-type white quarry sand to make concrete for structural elements would be punishable under Haiti's penal code and recommends using river sand. It is not clear how the edict will be enforced.
Feb 15, 2010 - 2:59:17 PM

Haiti
US forces scale back Haiti relief role
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti � The biggest U.S. military surge since Iraq and Afghanistan is scaling back a month after the troops arrived in haste to aid victims of Haiti's catastrophic quake. Great gray ships have been leaving behind Haiti's battered shores as thousands of American troops pack up their tents. The mission, however, is far from over. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says the U.S. will be in Haiti for the long haul, although troop strength is down to 13,000 from a Feb. 1 peak of 20,000. Those who remain will accompany Haitians in an arduous struggle toward recovery.
Feb 15, 2010 - 2:04:38 PM

Haiti
Mourning, fundraising replace Haiti carnival
Through dictatorship and democracy, coups d'etat and economic strife, carnival has always gone on -- until this year. Instead, the nation grieves. It is a manifestation of the Haitian spirit, the enduring buoyancy and optimism that has guided Haiti for more than 200 years. For as long as anyone can remember, carnival or kanaval has taken place. Until this year. Haiti carnival has now become a wake. As quake-struck Haitians ended three days of national mourning and fasting Sunday, the satirical drumbeats of the traditional ``meringues'' ridiculing politicians and rivaling musicians that would have marked the beginning of the three-day
Feb 15, 2010 - 11:00:35 AM

Haiti
Satellite Images Help Focus Haiti Earthquake Relief
NASA and space agencies around the world are pointing their satellites toward Haiti to aid relief efforts and map damage caused by the devastating earthquake earlier this week. The 7.0 magnitude quake struck the Caribbean island Tuesday, causing extensive destruction and fatalities estimated in the tens of thousands. NASA's Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER), a joint project with Japan, and its Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite are taking images of Haiti's hardest-hit areas in multiple wavelengths of light.
Jan 16, 2010 - 10:51:23 AM

US
Health bill would cost $829B, help cover 94 pct
WASHINGTON � Democrats are breathing a sigh of relief after a positive cost report on health care overhaul gave them a chance to rally around a Senate plan that significantly expands coverage while trimming the federal deficit. The Congressional Budget Office said Wednesday that the latest version of the Senate Finance Committee proposal would expand coverage to 94 percent of all eligible Americans at a 10-year cost of $829 billion.
Oct 8, 2009 - 3:08:37 PM