Days after the 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck Port-au-Prince Haiti, we are still learning the full extent of the devastating situation. Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Haiti and with those who have relatives or loved ones in Haiti.  

The United States is joining with others across the globe to offer civilian and military disaster relief and humanitarian and medical assistance to the people of Haiti and others in the region who have been impacted by the devastating situation. The following sites will provide you with important information on relief efforts in Haiti: 

Relief Efforts 

The following agencies and organizations are organizing relief efforts to support the people of Haiti. For more information, visit the Haiti relief web pages on the following sites: 

U.S. State Department
American Red Cross 
Center for International Disaster Information 
InterAction 
USAID 

U.S. Citizens in Haiti 

U.S. citizens are urged to contact the Embassy via email at ACSPaP@state.gov to request assistance.  U.S. citizens in Haiti can call the Embassy's Consular Task Force at 509-2229-8942, 509-2229-8089, 509-2229-8322, or 509-2229-8672.  The U.S. State Department has also created a task force to monitor the emergency. 

If you are seeking information about family members in Haiti, please call the U.S. State Department at 1-888-407-4747 or email haiti-earthquake@state.gov. 

FBI Fraud Alert 

Unfortunately, with an increase in need for charitable contributions comes an increase in scams. Before making a donation of any kind, the FBI has noted that consumers should adhere to certain guidelines, including the following: 

• Do not respond to any unsolicited (spam) incoming e-mails, including clicking links contained within those messages.  
• Be skeptical of individuals representing themselves as surviving victims or officials asking for donations via e-mail or social networking sites.  
• Verify the legitimacy of nonprofit organizations by utilizing various Internet-based resources that may assist in confirming the group’s existence and its nonprofit status rather than following a purported link to the site.  
• Be cautious of e-mails that claim to show pictures of the disaster areas in attached files because the files may contain viruses. Only open attachments from known senders.  
• Make contributions directly to known organizations rather than relying on others to make the donation on your behalf to ensure contributions are received and used for intended purposes.  
• Do not give your personal or financial information to anyone who solicits contributions: Providing such information may compromise your identity and make you vulnerable to identity theft.

Banner photo credit: M. Dormino