50,000 to 100,000 Dead in Haiti, Considered a “Conservative” Estimate

Posted on January 16th, 2010 by John Sostak

Haiti earthquake victims. Between 50,000 & 100,000 estimated dead

The Haiti death tolls have gone up non-stop since the earthquake days ago. The current Haiti death tolls are only in the tens of thousands, but unofficially, it may already be much more.

At this current time, they have collected 50,000 dead, according to Haitian officials. But for days, estimates have been in the hundreds of thousands range, at the very. For the moment, the Haiti death tolls have been estimated at 200,000, though that is down from the original 500,000 estimation.

Haiti’s Interior Minister, Paul Antoine Bien-Aime, told Reuters that the death toll is at 50,000 for now. His estimation is that 100,000 to 200,000 people are actually dead. But sadly, that kind of estimate is actually good news, compared to early predictions of 500,000 killed.

If the total reaches the hundreds of thousands, it will be among the deadliest earthquakes of all time. But given how many may be buried underneath rubble, and how many may never be found, it could be impossible to get a final total. Even Bien-Aime admitted that they will probably never know the exact number.

The Pan American Health Organization has a conservative estimate of between 50,000 and 100,000. However, even they really don’t have an accurate number. In any case, the Haiti death tolls may not take the aftermath into account.

No one will ever know how many people were directly killed by the earthquake, or from the horror afterward. With aid still slow to actually come in, virtually no authority in Haiti, and with the capital city practically destroyed, there is virtually nothing to stop further bloodshed.

Lawlessness, a lack of clean water, and disease could kill many more in the weeks and months ahead. Thanks to all of those factors, the true Haiti death tolls may take years to truly measure.

Please donate to help the recovery and rescue efforts in Haiti:

American Red Cross

Presidents Clinton & Bush Haiti Relief Fund

Tags: Bush, Clinton, Haiti

Presidents Obama, Bush, & Clinton Join Forces to Help Haiti

Posted on January 16th, 2010 by John Sostak

Presidents Bush, Clinton & Obama Join Forces to Help Haiti

WASHINGTON (AFP) – President Barack Obama on Saturday brought together his White House predecessors, Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Bill Clinton, for a joint appeal for victims of Haiti’s devastating earthquake.

“By coming together in this way, these two leaders send an unmistakable message to the people of Haiti and to the people of the world,” Obama said in the Rose Garden, flanked by the two former leaders.

“In these difficult hours, America stands united. We stand united with the people of Haiti who have shown such incredible resilience, and we will help them to recover and to rebuild.”

The United States was launching “one of the largest relief efforts in our history” to bring aid to Haiti following Tuesday’s devastating 7.0-magnitude earthquake that struck the heart of the poorest nation in the Americas.

Bush, who congratulated Obama for his “swift and timely response to the disaster,” said he was pleased to work with Clinton “to mobilize the compassion of the American people.”

The challenges in Haiti “are immense, but there’s a lot of devoted people leading the relief effort,” he said.

“The most effective way for Americans to help the people of Haiti is to contribute money. That money will go to organizations on the ground who will be able to effectively spend it.

“I know a lot of people want to send blankets or water. Just send your cash,” added Bush.

Clinton, the United Nations special envoy for Haiti, said the priority for now to ship food, medicine and water to Haiti.

“But when we start the rebuilding effort… we want there to be a place where people can know their money will be well spent, where we will ensure the ongoing integrity of the process. And we want to stay with this over the long run,” he said.

Obama and the ex-presidents directed people to the Clinton Bush Haiti Relief Fund to make donations.

To donate to the American Red Cross, click here.

Tags: Bush, Clinton, Haiti, Obama