The death toll from Tuesday's devastating earthquake could be between 45,000 and 50,000, with a further 3 million people hurt or homeless, a senior Haitian Red Cross official said yesterday.
"No one knows with precision, no one can confirm a figure. Our organization thinks between 45,000 and 50,000 people have died.
"We also think there are 3 million people affected throughout the country, either injured or homeless," Victor Jackson, an assistant national coordinator with Haiti's Red Cross said.
Earlier, Haitian President Rene Preval said 30,000 to 50,000 people could have died but did not say where the estimates came from.
Meanwhile, a United Nations spokeswoman said in Geneva yesterday that up to 200 international UN staff in Haiti, including peacekeepers, remain unaccounted for after its headquarters and other buildings collapsed in the earthquake.
Between 50 and 100 peacekeeping staff are believed to be trapped in the building. "In total, between 115 and 200 are unaccounted for, but it is an estimate from last night," Elisabeth Byrs, spokeswoman for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), told Reuters.
Questions:
1. What is the highest death toll according to the Red Cross
2. How many people have been hurt or homeless?
3. How many UN staff remain unaccounted for?
Answers:
1. 50,000.
2. 3 million.
3. 200.
(中国日报网英语点津 Helen 编辑)
About the broadcaster:
Lee Hannon is Chief Editor at China Daily with 15-years experience in print and broadcast journalism. Born in England, Lee has traveled extensively around the world as a journalist including four years as a senior editor in Los Angeles. He now lives in Beijing and is happy to move to China and join the China Daily team.