GENEVA--The International Red Cross Movement has helped more than 200,000 Haiti earthquake victims thanks to contributions from millions worldwide who have committed themselves to restoring Haiti.
St. Maarten residents have contributed about US $150,000 and 43,500 pounds of food, water and medical supplies to help the struggling island rebound from a 7.0-magnitude earthquake nearly a month ago. The quake was the seventh deadliest in recorded history, according to Wikipeedia.org .
With 21 groups dispatched to Haiti, the Red Cross has deployed the most Emergency Response Units (ERUs) ever. Seventeen were dispatched to East Asia in 2004 after the December 26 tsunami.
The Red Cross said Sunday that volunteers in Haiti had distributed more than 1,000,000 litres of safe water daily through 88 outposts in Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital. The quake struck just miles south of Port-au-Prince on January 12, killing hundreds of thousands and leaving millions injured and homeless.
The Red Cross said 20,000 persons were getting hygienic restrooms and 300 latrines were being built. About 9,600 persons have been treated through the Red Cross.
Relief supplies from Panama's PanAmerican Disaster Relief Unit (PADRU) to Haiti reached 639 tonnes a little over two weeks after the disaster. Red Cross ERUs have collected more than 1,800 tons of relief items.
The Red Cross says it plans to continue relief work in Haiti for at least another three years, hoping to restore livelihoods to about 300,000 persons. The international community will continue to appeal for donations.
