Information on Earthquake in Haiti
Washington,
Jan 15 -
Haiti Earthquake Resources
Haiti Earthquake Resources
I commend the quick action by the Obama Administration and the millions of Americans and citizens of the world touched by the haunting images from Haiti. As a husband and father, I cannot fathom the grief that this earthquake has caused and fully support all efforts to relieve the pain and suffering of those impacted by this terrible disaster.
-Representative Bill Foster
The thoughts and prayers of the entire Congress are with the people of Haiti.
The United States and Members of Congress remain committed to helping the
Haitian people recover from this latest disaster and rebuild their homes,
communities, and lives in the days and weeks to come. The Obama Administration
has launched a swift, coordinated and aggressive effort to save lives and
support the recovery in Haiti, including an immediate investment of $100 million
to support the relief efforts for life-saving equipment, food, water and
medicine that will be needed.
Looking For Relatives
Families of Americans living in Haiti who are
trying to find the status of their loved ones are encouraged to contact the
State Department at 1-888-407-4747. This line is experiencing a high volume of
calls at this time, so some callers may receive a recording. To better handle
these requests, the State Department has established an e-mail address as well:
Haiti-Earthquake@state.gov.
A top priority of the State Department is accounting for the thousands of
American citizens who are currently in Haiti. US citizens in Haiti have been
urged to contact the Embassy via email at ACSPaP@state.gov to request assistance
or call the Embassy's Consular Task Force at 509-2229-8942, 509-2229-8089,
509-2229-8322, or 509-2229-8672.
The Red Cross has also set up a Family Links website managed by the ICRC, in
cooperation with the tracing services of the Haitian Red Cross Society and of
National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies throughout the world, to assist in
the process of restoring contact between separated family members:
More Resources
Assistance for Haiti Relief Efforts
The State Department has
established a dedicated web page that offers advice for anyone wishing to
provide assistance to those affected by the earthquake:
The Center for International Disaster Information (CIDI) provides information
and guidance in support of appropriate international disaster relief:
Haitian Earthquake Relief Fraud Alert
The FBI has issued a fraud
alert, reminding Internet users who receive appeals to donate money in the
aftermath of Tuesday’s earthquake in Haiti to apply a critical eye and do their
due diligence before responding to those requests. Past tragedies and natural
disasters have prompted individuals with criminal intent to solicit
contributions purportedly for a charitable organization and/or a good cause.
Therefore, before making a donation of any kind, consumers should adhere to
certain guidelines, to include 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.
Anyone who has received an e-mail referencing the above information or anyone
who may have been a victim of this or a similar incident should notify the
Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov.