That’s 9 hours of an earthquake and aftershocks. I cannot comphend.
UN briefing from Dispatches from a Fragile Land:
All together, we are more than 9,000 uniformed personnel, 490 international civilian personnel, and 1,200 local civilian staff, and 200 United Nations Volunteers. And I didn’t mention, among the troops are 7,000 troops and
2,000 policemen. That is the total figure of MINUSTAH.As far as we know, the main building that was the Headquarters building called the Hotel Christopher has collapsed. As far as we speak, some of our troops – mostly Brazilian troops – are surrounding the building and trying to rescue the people from the main headquarters. As we speak, no-one has been rescued from this main headquarters, but we don’t know how many people were in the building when the collapse happened.
Right now, Save the Children is assessing staff and program safety, which will be complicated by the onset of evening. Employees who were in the office at the time are uninjured, though about half of program staff were elsewhere. The agency plans to deploy emergency teams and begin relief efforts soon.
It’s amazing the number of NGO’s and media using Twitter. CPAM 1610 Montreal has been overwhelmed.
From The Globe & Mail: Haitifeed a page of videos, pictures and newsfeeds from around the world. The Port-au-Prince airport won’t be opening today. As communication is restored, we who are unshaken and safe will be overwhelmed with the devestation. Give to a reputable charity as rescues begin and NGO’s move into recovery.
Even as I typed this more aftershocks have occurred. It’s as if the earth is trying to shake Haiti off. Australians are missing. The French government says about 200 are buried in a hotel.
Update: As rescue efforts continue ushahidi is updating. This website is a group of crisis mappers who work with the UN. The Mobile Giving Foundation has a list of Canadian aid and relief agencies which accept donations by text messsages. Canadian nurse Yvonne Martin who had landed in Haiti  about 90 minutes before the quake was part of a six member medical team from Emmanuel Missionary Church of Canada in Elmira. She has been confirmed dead.
Filipino UN troops Manilla Bulletin:
Elmer Cato, spokesman for the Philippine mission to the UN, told local television that the embassy was in touch with the UN authorities about the rescue efforts ongoing in Port-au-Prince after Tuesday’s magnitude 7.0 quake.
“We were informed also that there have been several bodies recovered, but also several victims are still alive and subject to recovery efforts,” Cato added.
He said the UN force advised the Filipino mission in New York that “some Filipino peacekeepers were trapped in the collapsed headquarters of the UN stabilisation force mission.”
56 Ontario church volunteers have managed to let people know they are safe. They were on a short term mission to the country. Among the group is South Bruce Peninsula Mayor Gwen Gilbert:
Gilbert and her husband Ernie Farrow were to leave today. They are part of a team of 50 members of the Sauble Christian Fellowship Church and friends who will assist the Mission of Hope, an organization that operates a school, church and orphanage and provides medical help to several hundred Haitian orphans. The mission is near the town of Aubry, northwest of the capital, Port au Prince.
“The United Nations soldiers are located down the road from us so we feel pretty safe and also our compound has armed guards 24 hours a day, so we don’t have to worry,” said Gilbert.
CARE, Unicef, Oxfam, The Red Cross, Episcopal Church, The Mennonite Central Committee…so many relief agencies crying in the night, their cries mixed in with voices earlier in the evening from Haiti. The helpers need help also, after this shaking night, response continues in the dawn.
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Some relief is their to help. Obama issued 100m to help with the devasting dasater. The only lights they had last night was those from the powermotor generating for the new crews.