Thursday, January 21 2010

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ANNA ZIZI gets a drink of water after being pulled alive on Tuesday from the rubble of the collapsed home of the parish priest at Port-au-Prince\'s Ro...

PORT-AU-PRINCE: A strong aftershock rocked Haiti yesterday morning just as much-needed medical aid via a US Navy ship reached the earthquake-ravaged nation.

Patients at a hospital near Haiti’s airport in Port-au-Prince immediately started praying as the ground shook like a ship rocking back and forth. They asked for forgiveness and protection, a nurse said.

At least one injury was reported in the moments after the 6.1-magnitude aftershock which struck at 6.03 am. There were no immediate reports of deaths or damage but many terrified Haitians ran out into the street when the ground started to shake.

The aftershock was the strongest to hit Haiti since 7.0-magnitude earthquake occurred on January 12, the US Geological Survey reported. The Haitian government said it already has recovered 72,000 bodies, but the Pan American Health Organisation, which is coordinating the health-sector response, has offered a preliminary estimate of 200,000 dead.

The aftershock rattled people struggling to recover from last week’s quake that walloped the impoverished country. Such a strong tremor can pose significant danger in a nation where damaged buildings are teetering precariously. One non-profit organisation, Save the Children, said its staff “heard already weakened structures collapsing” as a result of the aftershock.

Meanwhile, three million Haitians — a third of the population — were still in need of food, water, shelter and medical assistance, the United Nations estimated.

There are scenes of “madness” in some parts of the capital, CNN’s Ivan Watson reported from near the city’s port. People had gathered, desperate to catch a boat to another part of the country, though there was no certainty that such vessels were coming.

Families were rowing out to sea in small, overloaded rowboats – carrying up to 25 people – to be first in line if a ferry did arrive, Watson said. The situation was “a disaster waiting to happen,” he added. But relief workers were making strides in the arduous effort of getting aid to victims, officials said yesterday. “Every day we reach out further,” said Lt Gen PK Keen, deputy commander of the US military’s Southern Command. “We are moving in the right direction.”

Haitian President René Préval applauded the progress aid workers have made in restoring electricity and communication, clearing roads, erecting shelters, distributing food and re-establishing hospitals. Preval credited the international community.

“Without their help, it would be impossible for us to cope with the situation,” he said in an interview with CNN’s Amanpour.