Fears for more lives as dozens of tremors hit devastated Haiti

Published on Saturday 16 January 2010 10:41

EXPERTS in Edinburgh have warned of aftershocks hitting Haiti as the international aid effort steps up, with getting water to the victims a key priority.

Experts at the British Geological Survey in Edinburgh said they have monitored more than 40 "significant" aftershocks following the massive quake, which measured 7.5 on the Richter scale, on Tuesday.

The Evening News is supporting the Edinburgh Disaster Response Committee (EDRC), which is seeking donations through local relief agency Mercy Corps to help survivors of the disaster.

Today, Dr Brian Baptie, seismologist at the British Geological Survey, said it was impossible to say how long the aftershocks would last. He said: "The strongest so far has been 5.9, which is a big quake in itself and will have brought down some of the damaged buildings, and hampered relief efforts even further.

"These aftershocks can also cause loss of life, and people need to be aware that they will continue to strike for a few weeks yet.

"As more time passes, they will become less frequent and less powerful, but we would still expect to see fairly strong aftershocks."

The death toll is already estimated to be more than 50,000.

Looting, fights over food and water, and machete-wielding gangs roaming the streets of the capital, Port-au-Prince, have been reported, as anger mounts over the lack of aid.

But among the devastation there was hope, with the rescue of a two-year-old girl from a collapsed building by British firefighters. Today Mercy Corps said getting fresh water was one of the biggest needs, while there were fears that bodies piled up in the streets, combined with a lack of water, could lead to deadly outbreaks of diarrhoea, hepatitis and cholera.

Mercy Corps international water and sanitation expert Mugur Dumitrache said clean water was the number one priority. He said the Mercy Corps team, which arrived in Haiti yesterday, would be working to quickly restore water and sanitation services.

He said: "Most people can live without water for only three or four days, but the sick, children and the elderly don't even have that much time.

"The United Nations Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs has confirmed that Port-au-Prince's water supply system had been cut off. Deliveries arriving at the national airport yesterday could not be immediately distributed, due to the chaos on the streets, and warnings were issued that greater security would be needed to protect supplies being delivered to those most in need.

Mr Dumitrache has overseen the Scottish-based aid agency's implementation of innovative water and sanitation systems after disasters such as the 2008 cyclone in Myanmar and last year's earthquake in the Sumatra region of Indonesia. He stressed that providing water to earthquake survivors can be a tough task that includes finding water sources, purchasing trucks and tanks, hiring staff, and purifying and chlorinating large quantities of water.

Without water, Mr Dumitrache warned: "You wind up with people dying not only of critical injuries, but very preventable diseases."