Israelis missing in Haiti as toll rises
EIGHT Israelis are reported missing in Haiti as Israel prepares to send aid to the earthquake-devastated nation.
JERUSALEM — Eight Israelis are reported missing in earthquake-devastated Haiti as frantic rescue efforts continue.
The powerful earthquake flattened whole neighborhoods in the capital Port-au-Prince including hospitals, schools, the presidential palace, the main prison and the historic cathedral.
Officials fear up to 100,000 people may have perished in the 7.0 magnitude quake, the most powerful to hit Haiti in more than 200 years according to the US Geological Survey.
The quake’s epicentre was only 16 kilometres from Port-au-Prince, which has a population of about 1 million people.
UN peacekeeping chief Alain Le Roy said that at least 14 UN personnel were killed and 150 were still unaccounted for, including mission chief Hedi Annabi.
The International Red Cross said a third of the country’s nine million people may need emergency aid and that it would take a day or two for a clear picture of the damage to emerge.
“The situation is chaotic,” said Doctors Without Borders Operations Manager Paul McPon. He said most of the hospitals and the medical centres in the country collapsed or are unusable.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry said that eight Israeli citizens were reported missing in Haiti.
The ministry said it managed to contact Bridget Pierre Amashi and her nine-year-old son, Segev David Amashi, who had earlier been were reported missing.
Eli Amashi, Segev’s father, said: “I am relived and exhausted.” Amashi received word from his divorcee’s mother that the two were located safe and sound. He said that he has yet to talk to his son, due to the jammed phone lines, but hopes to speak with him soon.
The Israel Defence Forces is preparing for the possibility of sending an aid delegation that will include some 200 medical personal and Home Front Command staff. The delegation will focus on giving medical aid and will set up a field hospital that can treat injuries.
It is not clear whether the delegation will fly to Haiti on air force planes or a private airline.
YNET
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