+ Haiti Earthquake Lucy Rowe, December 2014

+ The facts: January 12 th, 2010, 16: Magnitude Earthquake struck near Leogane, 25km from Capital of Haiti – Port au Prince Shallow quake at depth of 13km along the Erriquillo-Plantain Garden fault system. Northern boundary of Caribean tectonic plate shifts eastward by 20mm per year in relation to the Nth American Plate The fault had been locked for 250years gathering stress and it finally shifted in January 2010

+ Immediate Effects Mass damage to infrastructure and mass loss of life occurred instantaneously All hospitals, air/sea and land transport facilities and communcation systems were damaged in Port au Prince residences and commercial buildings were destroyed Police, fire and authoritarian buildings all damaged and rendered incapacitated from earthquake dead and a further 1.5 million homeless people

+ Socio-economic, cultural and political context of disaster Haiti is 149 th out of 182 on Human Development Index Poorest country in Western Hemisphere History of national debt, unfair trade policies imposed by other countries and pre-existing poverty and poor housing conditions No building codes/standards meant construction was of a poor standard and many residential houses were considered temporary structures prior to the earthquake

+ Relief efforts Due to the poor nature of the country, international aid and relief flowed into Haiti It was often poorly planned and coordinated, making relief efforts complicated and ineffective Distribution of aid was slow due to the destruction of the airfield, ports and roads Safety of Aid workers was compromised due to rioting, looting and violence Multiple temporary shelters were erected for the displaced but were insufficient and poorly planned leading to increased communicable diseases and suffering.

+ Current Situation Approximately people still live in temporary structures with little access to water, electricity and light Initial aid donors have moved on to other crisis areas Haiti needs to transition away from relying on outside donors Still a unstable political situation making long term planning difficult High potential for further earthquakes in the region