International Responses to the Earthquake in Haiti

Abstract

The earthquake in Haiti is a terrible tragedy that has resulted in thousands of deaths, widespread destruction and a terrible setback to progress in Haiti. Several factors contributed to this earthquake being particularly devastating. First, Haiti is not a place like, for example California, where earthquakes occur with great frequency, so the buildings and other structures were not built with seismic issues taken into consideration. Second, seismic precautions are not cheap; and Haiti, of course, is an extremely poor country, so even if it had been a concern, it is unlikely buildings able to sustain an earthquake of this magnitude would have been built.