On January 12, 2010, there were over 200,000 deaths in Haiti due to the earthquake. Destruction and devastation was seen throughout the whole country. The population of Haiti was abruptly put into a universal state of panic. Poverty and despair was stricken on the inhabitants of Haiti. Destruction surrounded every corner. Buildings after buildings were crushed on top of themselves. Piles of garbage burned in the streets, and hundreds of thousands lived in tents that were nothing more than tarps and sheets. People walked aimlessly through the wreckage trying to find some pieces of their old lives. There is no question that everyone in Haiti was affected by the earthquak. (CNN Library, 2014).
Before the earthquake, Haitians already lived in a heavily impoverished nation. A household in Haiti will typically contain more than one family. It is very infrequent in Haiti for any particular person to own their own household detached from family members. Because of this, it is occasionally difficult for Haitians to live in the US and recreate this kind of living arrangement due to the economic problems. Because Haitians like to live with a lot of family beneath one roof, all members of the household benefit jointly. Tasks like farming and building new homes can be completed rapidly with a lot of people. Haitians like to label themselves as crabs in a bucket, because if one crab is near to escaping, the others will tug it down so to stay together (Jacobson, 2003).
The day the earthquake hit Haiti, about 230,000 people were killed. Over 300,000 were injured. Along with the people already homeless in Haiti, an additional 1.5 million people lost their homes. Almost 5,000 schools were affected by the earthquake which greatly affects the chil...
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... starving, dehydrated women cannot lift the 150-pound sacks of rice, so all of it would get taken by the strong males that would then hoard the rice or sell it for ridiculously inflated prices.
One way or another, the earthquake affected every member of the Haitian community. Haiti is still recovering from all of the damage. Lives, homes, and schools were completely wiped out. Billions of dollars were lost from all of the damages. Even after the earthquake, people were still being affected. The cholera made citizens ill and some died. The Haitian’s spirits were completely shattered. (CNN Library, 2014).
References
CNN Library (2014, January). Haiti earthquake fast facts. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/
Jacobson, E. (2003). An introduction to Haitian culture for rehabilitation service provider. Retrieved from http://cirrie.buffalo.edu/culture/monographs/haiti/
The Haiti earthquake that occurred on January 12, 2010 just fifteen miles south of the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince was a severely large-scale earthquake, at a magnitude of 7.0. The initial shock was then followed by a series of aftershocks with magnitudes ranging up to 5.9. Over three hundred thousand people died due to this extreme chaos. Many buildings collapsed and disintegrated under the force of the quake; both the cathedral and National Palace in Port-au-Prince were heavily damaged. In the aftermath of this tragedy, efforts to aid the people of Haiti with medical assistance, water, and food were hampered by the loss of communication lines as well as by roads blocked by debris. Over one million people were left homeless due to this quake. Two days after the earthquake, journalist Leonard Pitts wrote “Sometimes the Earth is Cruel,” an article describing how the people of Haiti responded to the disaster. In “Sometimes the Earth is Cruel,” a major theme is that some things are inevitable.
The Haitian government’s lack of preparedness for earthquakes despite the fact that earthquakes are common to the region is indicative of the governments inability and lack of resources to properly plan and protect it’s population against natural disasters. This lack of preparedness is not an isolated incident. Prior to the disaster, the World Bank and others were working with the Haitian government to incorporate disaster risk management into Haiti’s development strategy and to develop its capacity for disaster response. This capacity building was in its early stages of development when the earthquake hit, on January 12, 2010, and was mainly focused on hurricanes, which are the most common cause of natural disaster on the island (Margesson, 2010, p. 4).
The story of Haiti’s healthcare system is unfortunately tied all too closely to disaster, both man-made and nature-born. This paper will briefly discuss the pre-2010 earthquake healthcare environment in Haiti as the uncertainty that exists provides little opportunity to provide a reasoned understanding of its current national healthcare status.
Currently, almost two years ago Haiti was struck by a 7.0 magnitude earthquake. It sparked an international urge to help aid and relieve Haiti of its catastrophe. Not only governments in various countries reached out, but independent organizations as well. This disastrous event showed how the world could come together when their neighbor is in need. But prior to this 2010 earthquake, Haiti was already facing devastation other than a natural one - societal.
In the article Sometimes, the Earth is Cruel by Leonard Pitts we read about the damage that came from the earthquake in Haiti. What happened on that day changed so many lives in ways that are unfixable. The crazy part about disasters is that they can also create more of a community. They give a chance for renewal and allow others there to help. This article gives a look into some of the small details and feelings happening in Haiti and all over the world. The earthquake created a support system for recovery, it also brought new strength to the people struggling, this allows the people better understand why the Earth does cruel things.
On January 12, 2010, while vacationing in Santo Domingo, DR. Tragedy hit and my strong foundation no longer stood. An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 shook and uprooted homes, places of business and my sense of peace. After hearing news of the earthquake, I rush to Port-au-Prince to check on my family. I was reassured that my family was secured and had no life threatening injuries, but the same was not said to my grandparent’s neighbor. Their neighbor suffered from a head injury and deep laceratio...
Needless to say, the effect of this earthquake on the people of Haiti was horrible. Before the earthquake, Haiti was already an underdeveloped country, but after the earthquake, it became even worse. With death and hopelessness everywhere, thousands of Haitians were forced into absolute poverty, which further upset their economy. The earthquake itself killed around 233,000 people. If a building did not fall on you and crush you to death, than other problems awaited you. Just walking around in Haiti could make you sick from all of the pollution, the stench and infection from dead bodies that lay in the open all over the streets. Trying to drink the infected water could easily kill a person who tried to drink it. A large number of people were
America and Haiti’s social system works by everyone belonging into a different category of class. Few people belong to the 1 percent, some in the middle and the rest live in poverty. Some people many argue that poverty doesn’t exist in United States because it is one of the richest countries, but poverty seems to be hidden. Meanwhile in Haiti, poverty is every visible because natural disasters and the people on top have caused it. In both countries, poverty turns into misogyny because people view women as object. Therefore, the system of social class in America is similar to other countries in their problems, although the main difference is that poverty in America can be invisible.
However, this quake was strong enough that even many sturdy buildings collapsed. The fact that Haiti had no reliable first responder system, such as police, fire, EMS, only made matters worse. Because of situations such as these, many lives were lost that would not have been had the earthquake happened elsewhere.
Before the quake, Haiti was already in a troublesome condition and it had be suffering for more than 10 years since people landed there. Less the 60 percent people who lived in Haiti barely accessed clean water. They don’t even have a national building code and more than half of Haitians society was living in hardship. In fact, the reason why people in Haiti suffered so much is because they didn’t have a lot of money. You could tell by just looking at the shape it was in before the quake. If things were this incompetent, then just think about the education level the kids were getting. Its education organization was already disordered. About only 25% of the schools in Haiti were free or were inexpensive and
An earthquake of magnitude 7.0 hit the island of Haiti on January 12, 2010, killing anywhere from 100,000 to 300,000 people, injuring another 300,000 others, and leaving over 1.5 million without homes (Fleddermann, 2012, p.116). The majority of the destruction and human toll occurred in Port au Prince, the capital city of Haiti, although the effects of the earthquake were spread throughout the island. Aside from the many people who died, were injured, or left homeless, those involved in this disaster are the Haitian government, the United Nations, civil engineers, the press, relief organizations, and the United States. Although initially perceived as simply a natural disaster, it becomes apparent through further research that the degree of loss experienced might have been lessened if certain procedures and codes were in place and followed to increase the safety and integrity of the buildings in Haiti.
For years, Haiti has been known as the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. The country has been effected by many health, environmental, political, and natural disasters all leading to its biggest issue today, poverty. Poverty has sent Haiti into a huge stand still. Children aren’t getting educated, families can’t find shelter, and it is uncertain where the families will get their next meal. Since the beginning of the 19th century, poverty has been Haiti’s biggest conflict caused primarily by natural disasters, lack of education, and the spread of disease.
The economics of Haiti has deceased in the last 4 years after the devastating earthquake that struck it 4 years ago. The Haiti economy has become very poor and one of the poorest country in the south, Central America and Caribbean region making it ranked 24 out of 29 countries in this area and its overall score is below average. Haiti’s economic freedom is 48.1 making it economy the 151st freest country while in the last several years Declines in the management of government spending, freedom from corruption, and labor freedom make its overall score 2.6 points lower than last year. Recovering from the disastrous earthquake in 2010 with the support of the U.S. recovering efforts “Haiti’s post-earthquake reconstruction efforts continue, assisted by substantial aid from the international community. Governing institutions remain weak and inefficient, and overall progress has not been substantial. The parliament has not renewed the mandate of the Interim Haiti Recovery Commission, which had been tasked with overseeing reconstruction efforts but was unpopular.”( .heritage.org). The open market of Haiti trade weighted to be 2.1 this is because the lack of tariffs hamper the trade freedom of Haiti. Foreign investors are given national treatment but the investment is small and the financial sector is remained underdeveloped and does not provide any adequate support.
Earthquakes happen about 20,000 times a year worldwide. They can destroy almost anything.In 2011, Japan had 9.1 magnitude earthquake, close to the highest magnitude of 9.2 in Alaska. They suffered tremendous damage from such a strong earthquake. The year before Haiti suffered from a 7.0 magnitude earthquake, still quite high compared to small tremors at magnitude 0-2. Japan recovered and rebuilt much faster than haiti did though. Haiti isn't even quite done recovering yet. The earthquakes had such different effects on the countries because of their economy, the condition of their people, and population rates.
The effects caused by earthquakes are devastating. They cause loss of human life and have effects on infrastructure and economy. Earthquakes can happen at any time anywhere. In January 12, 2010 an earthquake of a magnitude of 7.0 hit the nation of Haiti. An estimation of 316,000 people were killed, and more than 1.3 million Haitians were left homeless (Earthquake Information for 2010). Haiti was in a terrified chaos. After the earthquake, families were separated because many of the members were killed. Homes, schools, and hospitals were demolished. People lost their most valuable belongings. It will take time for the country to recover from this terrible disaster. The long damages are economic issues, health-state, and environmental issues that effect in the beautiful island of Haiti.