Haiti quake relief effort under way

The United Nations and international humanitarian agencies are preparing to begin aid efforts in Haiti, after an earthquake in which many people are feared to have been killed. Thousands of people living in and around Port au-Prince, the Haitian capital, are thought to have been trapped in the rubble of buildings that collapsed during the earthquake on Tuesday evening. Elisabeth Byrs, a spokeswoman for the UN's Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs, said that search and rescue teams were "working against the clock" to save lives. About 37 search and rescue teams from a global network have been mobilised by the UN. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said on Wednesday that its relief plans are based on a "maximum of three million people". Jean-Luc Martinage, a Federation spokesman, said that "a massive international aid operation was needed" in the wake of the quake, which was centred about 15km inland, west of the capital. Aid agencies said that access to trapped people has restricted by debris, while electricity, water and phone services were down.