Update Situation In Haiti

Online Services

Update On Situation In Haiti
---White House Intergovernmental Affairs

Good afternoon,

We want to make sure that everyone has the most up-to-date information on the situation in Haiti. The outpouring of support the past few days has been truly inspiring and we are grateful for your interest in helping.

General information to share with your state/city/community.

For the most up to date information throughout the coming days please continue to monitor www.whitehouse.gov/HaitiEarthquake or www.state.gov.

A top priority is accounting for the thousands of American citizens who are currently in Haiti. 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 we ask for your continued patience.

Cash donations are the most efficient and effective way to help the relief effort in Haiti right now. They allow humanitarian organizations to purchase (often within the affected region itself) the exact type and quantity of items needed by those affected by the crisis. Read about the advantages of monetary donations here. You can immediately donate to the Red Cross to assist the relief effort. Contribute online to the Red Cross, or donate $10 to be charged to your cell phone bill by texting "HAITI" to "90999." You can also find more ways to help through the Center for International Disaster Information, or through USAID’s interactive website, which has a list of NGOs and instructions on how to help: http://www.usaid.gov.

Right now, the airport is being used to facilitate search and rescue efforts. This is a complex and difficult environment, and all of our efforts have to be focused on prioritizing and moving the right resources into Haiti that can save lives in the next 48 hours. That is why we are encouraging private citizens to focus their efforts on supporting established aid organizations that are deploying resources to Haiti, and to hold off on travelling there themselves.

Specific Information for states/cities/communities offering assistance

The absolute best way to help Haiti right now is through monetary donations. The FAA has halted incoming travel to Haiti and unapproved humanitarian missions and aid will be turned away. FEMA has been in touch with specially trained search and rescue teams throughout the country who may be deployed to Haiti in the coming days. If FEMA has not reached out to a team in your state/city/community, their assistance is not needed at this time.

If you feel your city/state/community has resources that could be especially useful to Haiti at this time, please do the following:

States and local elected officials who wish to offer assistance should email: helphaiti@state.gov and put in the subject line “Donation of XXXX” to indicate what is the service being offered

For small organizations and individuals they should go to www.cidi.org to specify what entities they wish to provide

If there is desire to utilize the services offered you will get either a follow-up phone call or e-mail message

Thank you for your cooperation.

We will continue to provide updates in the coming days.