On January 12, a series of earthquakes with magnitudes ranging from 6.5 to 7.3 devastated Haiti. The American Red Cross is working with its partners in the global Red Cross and Red Crescent network, including the Haitian Red Cross, and other partners to assist those affected by this disaster.

Your gift to the American Red Cross will support emergency relief and recovery efforts to help those people affected by the earthquake in Haiti. Assistance provided by the American Red Cross may include deploying personnel, sending relief supplies, and providing financial resources.

CARE is a leading humanitarian organization fighting global poverty. We place special focus on working alongside poor women because, equipped with the proper resources, women have the power to help whole families and entire communities escape poverty. Women are at the heart of CARE's community-based efforts to improve basic education, prevent the spread of HIV, increase access to clean water and sanitation, expand economic opportunity and protect natural resources. CARE also delivers emergency aid to survivors of war and natural disasters, and helps people rebuild their lives.

CARE is continuing to rush aid and emergency team members to Haiti following the 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck the impoverished country on Tuesday, January 12. The capital city is in ruins. Most of the buildings have collapsed, including hospitals, homes and schools. Approximately 3 million people have been affected by the disaster.

The quake's epicenter was just 10 miles south of the country's capital, Port-au-Prince, where the majority of people live on less than $2 per day.

Estimates of the dead range from 50,000-200,000 people, and many more have lost their homes in the most powerful quake ever recorded in the country – the poorest in the Western Hemisphere. Haiti's President René Préval states, "It is a catastrophe."

The earthquake that rocked the coast of Haiti killed or injured a devastating number of people. Even more were left in need of aid, making this is one of the great humanitarian emergencies in the history of the Americas. In the aftermath of the disaster, President Barack Obama asked President Bill Clinton and President George W. Bush to raise funds for immediate relief and long-term recovery efforts to help those who are most in need of food, water, shelter, medical care, and support. In response, the two Presidents established the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund (CBHF) to identify and fulfill unmet needs in the region, foster economic opportunity, improve the quality of life of those affected over the long term, and assist the people of Haiti as they rebuild their lives and country. Presidents Clinton and Bush oversee the CBHF through their respective nonprofit organizations, the William J. Clinton Foundation and Communities Foundation of Texas. One hundred percent of the donations made to the Clinton Foundation go directly to relief efforts. Ninety-nine percent of the donations made to the Communities Foundation of Texas go directly to relief efforts.

We are incredibly grateful for the generous support from our donors for the emergency in Haiti.

MSF has been working in Haiti for 19 years, most recently operating three emergency hospitals in Port-au-Prince, and is mobilizing a large emergency response to this disaster. Our immediate response in the first hours following the disaster in Haiti was only possible because of private unrestricted donations from around the world received before the earthquake struck. We are currently reinforcing our teams on the ground in order to respond to the immediate medical needs and to assess the humanitarian needs that MSF will be addressing in the months ahead.

We are now asking our donors to give to our Emergency Relief Fund. These types of funds ensure that our medical teams can react to the Haiti emergency and humanitarian crises all over the world, particularly neglected crises that remain outside the media spotlight.

An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 struck the Caribbean nation of Haiti on January 12, 2010—just 10 miles west of the capital, Port-au-Prince. Thousands of buildings and homes were destroyed, and the number of those affected is in the millions.

Habitat’s response in Haiti
Although the full toll of homes severely damaged or destroyed is not yet known, Habitat has begun to respond by addressing immediate relief efforts and long-term shelter solutions for low-income families.

Habitat’s early response to the earthquake is threefold:

* Cleanup
To clear the way for home repair and construction, Habitat will assist in the cleanup by mobilizing people to remove debris and salvage materials that can be recycled in new shelter.

* Shelter kits
Shelter kits include building materials and tools and are designed to help families and neighborhoods make immediate repairs to damaged homes. The kits typically include items such as wall panels, roofing sheets, hurricane straps and a hammer and nails. Habitat also has a cadre of certified masons and carpenters to assist families with immediate repairs.

* Transitional shelter
Small transitional shelters can be built quickly and provide permanent base structures that can be expanded over time. The shelters will meet humanitarian standards of adequate living space and provision of water and sanitation. The structures will also be designed with hurricane- and earthquake-resistant features.

Immediate response to the disaster will include working with Habitat Haiti to restore its capacity to fully participate in the recovery efforts. Through all aspects of the work, Habitat will cultivate partnerships with local residents and other humanitarian organizations that can multiply the effectiveness of the response.

On January 12, a 7.0 earthquake struck 10 miles south of Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince.

International Medical Corps' Emergency Response Team is in Port-au-Prince assisting survivors of the 7.0-magnitude earthquake that hit Haiti Tuesday. The team is providing medical care outside the general hospital near the Presidential Palace where hundreds of people have congregated for help.

* Estimated 2.5 to 3 million people are expected be affected.
* Earthquake triggered mudslides, collapsed buildings, and knocked out power and communications lines.
* Injuries and loss of life are predicted to be substantial.
* People reportedly trapped under rubble and much of Port-au-Prince is destroyed.

Other members of the Emergency Response Team are conducting a rapid needs assessment and visiting hospitals around the city to explore their condition.

In addition to emergency medical care, survivors of the earthquake are likely to be in immediate need of food and water, as well as non-food items like blankets, tents, stoves, and water purification equipment. Public health is a major concern as well. International Medical Corps will also focus on providing emergency shelter and other essential items in its relief effort.

The response draws on 25 years of experience in emergency settings, including last September’s earthquake in Sumatra, Indonesia, and the massive 2005 earthquake in Pakistan.

Right now, the International Rescue Committee is deploying its Emergency Response Team to Haiti to deliver help to the devastated city of Port-au-Prince.Our team includes experts in emergency health, shelter, and children’s welfare. They will be working with local aid groups to provide vital help to survivors of the massive earthquake that struck Haiti January 12. Meanwhile, the IRC has committed to raising $5 million for reconstruction work in Haiti over the next year.

The Haitian Red Cross believes up to 45,000 and 50,000 people have been killed by the quake and as many as 3 million people injured or made homeless. Huge numbers of people in the Haitian capital lack food, clean water, shelter and medical care, even as one of the largest international relief efforts in recent history gets underway.

Our specialists are veteran first responders who have quickly set up effective emergency programs around the world during violent conflicts and natural disasters. They also have a long history of working closely and effectively with local aid organizations, including in Pakistan after the 2005 earthquake, in Indonesia after the South Asian tsunami, and in Myanmar after the 2008 cyclone.

The IRC is also supporting members of the Haitian-American community in the United States who are in the process of organizing a major response. Many of them are refugees who were resettled in the United States by the IRC.