Haiti Death Tolls Rise

Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

The quake news from Haiti continues to roll in, but sporadically and uncertainly and without verification. The Haiti death tolls that are being guesstimated are all over the map, ranging from the very broad hundreds of thousands, to one hundred thousand and then down to fifty thousand. The only good news in all of this is that the statistics are trending lower. The latest news however is that the tolls are expected to rise. It is not clear whether this is due to uncertainty of the previous trend or to the concern over possibly deaths occurring due to unsanitary conditions. Do lower tolls signify a weakening correlation with the influence of the devil? Pat Robertson would have to be consulted about that. Even Rush Limbaugh might have some insight.

In unsanitary conditions, death can lead to further death. If bodies are not isolated and cremated or buried, they become unhealthful and can contaminate water sources with disease. As Haiti death tolls rise, death becomes more of a possibility for the population.

Injuries are only being guessed at, and unfortunately many injuries will turn into fatalities, especially if the pace of the relief effort does not pick up. It would seem that the number of injuries, ranging from critical to superficial, would be many times greater than the number of deaths. Injuries too will continue to rise as the heroic individuals performing dangerous rescue operations become victims themselves.

It seems that the number of homeless and displaced will be counted in the millions. In the long run, sheltering these victims will be the largest part of this relief effort. It may have to continue for years before Haiti gets back to normal. At least the weather is cooperating with the efforts of so many to help out Haiti and so many of its citizens.