Contacting Relatives in Haiti
Friends and relatives in Canada seeking information on Canadian citizens believed to be in Haiti should contact the Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada’s Emergency Operations Centre by calling 1-800-387-3124 or, for those in Ottawa, 613-943-1055. They may also send an email to sos@international.gc.ca.
The Canadian Red Cross is in close contact with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) which is working with the Haitian Red Cross to coordinate the efforts to re-establish contact between Haitians living in the affected area and their relatives abroad.
The ICRC has launched a Family Links Website aimed at enabling persons in region and abroad to register the names of relatives with whom they are striving to restore contact. Persons seeking news from their loved ones can therefore register the name of the sought persons directly on the site at: http://www.icrc.org/familylinks.
So far, nearly 23,500 names have been registered on the ICRC family links website. More than 1,600 of these postings are from people eager to let their loved ones know that they are safe and alive. Over the past few days, some 360 names have been removed from the list after people being sought were located by their relatives.
The ICRC and the Haitian Red Cross have also started running an office to help restore family links Radio stations have begun advertising the service, encouraging those without news of their relatives to contact the Haiti Red Cross or the ICRC.
On Tuesday, Red Cross gave people in some of the worst-affected neighbourhoods of Port-au-Prince, including Croix-de-Prez and Canapé Vert, the opportunity to make international phone calls to family members living abroad, mainly in the United States. A total of 117 calls were made.
You Make the Difference – Support Our Family Reunification Program
The Canadian Red Cross Restoring Family Links program helps people in Canada to re-establish contact with immediate family members after separation due to armed conflict, natural disaster, migration and other humanitarian crises. Please donate to the Canadian Red Cross Fund.
