Haiti rocked by powerful earthquake
January 13, 2010 |12:48 | News By : Team X
A powerful earthquake measuring seven on the Richter scale has struck the Caribbean state of Haiti. Reports say hundreds, possibly thousands, of people are missing after the quake near the country's capital city of Port-au-Prince.
Buildings have collapsed and power supplies and communications have been disrupted.The United Nations said a large number of its personnel in the city were unaccounted for after a five-story building at the headquarters of its mission there collapsed.
Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and has a history of destructive natural disasters. Some 9,000 UN police and troops are stationed there to maintain order. US President Barack Obama said his 'thoughts and prayers' were with the people of Haiti and pledged immediate aid.
The US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, said the US would provide both military and civilian disaster assistance. The World Bank, which said its local offices were destroyed but that most staff were accounted for, plans to send a team to help Haiti assess damage and plan a recovery.
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