After the devastating 7.0 magnitude earthquake which struck the poor nation of Haiti last week, the country remains in complete ruin.

A death toll skyrocketing toward 200,000 (at our press time) – and so many more still unaccounted for. A nation of shanties and huts, flattened. No electricity, no telephones, no laws.

What progress had been made since four hurricanes hit the country in 2008 has now been reduced to rubble.

It is so overwhelming to watch the devastation on the nightly news. Survivors stand amongst the dusty dead on the streets; outrage at a lack of immediate aid is growing.

How to help? Here in Stratford several agencies and organizations have already answered the call for help. The Rotary Club of Stratford has shipped off 100 Aquaboxes to help provide locals with clean drinking water, and financial donations are being accepted by the Canadian Red Cross and Salvation Army.

The Alzheimer Society of Perth County, students at Northwestern Secondary School and athletes with the Brazilian Soccer Schools have also made donations or plan to do so soon (see this week’s front-page story for more details).

In nearby St. Marys, the local Hope for Haiti group held a meeting on the weekend which  led to the creation of a relief fund. The group most recently travelled to the impoverished Central American nation to do missionary work in November. Money raised by the group will be used to buy emergency supplies such as food, medicine, water, medical supplies and other essentials.

Nationally, just this week Canada pledged an additional $60 million and 1,000 troops in aid after the United Nations made a call for help.

There’s been some indication that donations from around the world are starting to make a difference in caring for the injured, preventing the spread of disease and providing water, food, and other essentials; however, with nearly three million people affected by last week’s earthquake, there’s still much to be done, and many people who need help.

As humans, it is difficult to truly comprehend why the chips fall where they do in life. It seems like the poorest people bear the brunt of disasters; just look at the Asian Tsunami, the Iranian earthquake in 2004, and, closer to home, Hurricane Katrina. Chalk it up to geopolitics – those with money can instinctively choose to live in safer areas.

But with these instincts come responsibility. There is urgent need now – but the need will continue to exist long after the earthquake fades from the evening news.

The country’s plight has been neglected for too long.