The country of Haiti was struck by a devastating earthquake on January 12th of 2010. It is said the earthquake claimed the lives of 230.000 people and left a million homeless. The damage to the Haitian infrastructure was immense with 250.000 residences and over 30.000 official buildings being destroyed. Communications were also in disarray and as a result the relief effort was shambolic. As the magnitude of the disaster became clear the rest of the World woke up and started sending aid and personnel to Haiti. Countless charity events were organised to raise money for the Haitian people and Presidents Clinton and Bush Senior became involved. So much money was raised, more than $5 billion, that each displaced family could potentially be given a check for $37,000. Now, 9 months later, only 2% of this money has actually been released for projects helping the Haitian people, approximately 90% of the rubble is still in need of clearing up and a milion people still live in tents. Who is to blame? No one and everyone. Charities holding on to the money, governments making promises and not keeping them and the Haitian people, who seem to be waiting for someone else to clean up the mess.
2A resident sells iron collected from buildings destroyed during an earthquake in downtown Port-au-Prince.
3Residents get their hair tended to in a makeshift hair salon on a street in downtown Port-au-Prince.
4A woman carries supplies, donated by the non-governmental organisation World Vision, to combat the
rainy season at a provisional camp set up at the Canapevert zone in Port-au-Prince.
5An earthquake survivor receives medical support in a provisional camp set up at the Petionville golf club
in Port-au-Prince.
6A resident looks at a makeshift stall downtown in Port-au-Prince.
7A resident stands next to her belongings in downtown Port-au-Prince.
8A solar-powered lamp is seen inside a provisional camp for earthquake victims in Port-au-Prince.
9A resident collects blocks, from buildings destroyed in an earthquake, to sell in downtown Port-au-Prince.
10Residents sell products beside buildings destroyed during an earthquake in downtown Port-au-Prince. (Photo: Eduardo Munoz/Reuters)
11A man travels on his wheelchair on the streets of Port-au-Prince.
12Women pass in front of burning garbage and debris from buildings destroyed by an earthquake in
Port-au-Prince.
13Earthquake survivors are seen at camp set up at the Delmas 33 zone at the site where a tree collapsed
over tents last week due to heavy rains in Port-au-Prince.
14A woman carries supplies during a distribution of supplies donated by the Haitian government to help
residents combat the rainy season in Port-au-Prince.
15A boy walks past presidential candidate posters in Port-au-Prince.
16An earthquake survivor fixes his tent after it collapsed last week after rains in Port-au-Prince, at a camp
set up near the Toussaint Louverture International Airport.
17An earthquake survivor fixes his shelter, after the structure collapsed last week due to rain, at a camp set
up in the airport zone in Port-au-Prince.
18A woman carries drinks to sell while walking during a drizzle at a provisional camp set up at the
Petionville golf club in Port-au-Prince.
19Earthquake survivors play cards at a camp set up at the
Petionville zone in Port-au-Prince.
20A man stands in a puddle with his crutches while waiting to cross the street at downtown Port-au-Prince.
21A woman styles her hair with curlers as business carries on in a hairdressing salon at Port-au-Prince.
22Women pass a cathedral, which was damaged after the earthquake, in Port-au-Prince.
23An earthquake victim carries a bucket with water in the destroyed neighborhood of
Fort-Liberte in Port-au-Prince.
24A view of the destroyed neighborhood of Fort-Liberte in Port-au-Prince. (Photo: Eduardo Munoz/Reuters)
25Tania Lalanne, 26, who lost six relatives during the earthquake,
walks over what was her house in the destroyed neighborhood of Fort-Liberte in Port-au-Prince.
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