Tuesday night’s horrific 7+ magnitude earthquake in Port au Prince Haiti, has all but devastated this island nation, said to be the poorest in the Western Hemisphere.

This catastrophe,  which many seismologists say may dwarf the 2008 earthquake in China (which killed more than 100,000) may even wind up being one of the worst in recorded history with possibly as many as half a million souls lost to the quake’s massive destruction, and many thousands more succumbing to disease, hunger, and thirst.

The latest death toll was 50,000 but thousands more are expected buried under the rubble. The effects to the urban environment, and social ecosystem there, are devastating to say the least.

Earthquakes are common in many parts of the world, especially in the Middle East, the Far East and Southern  Asia, and in many of the world’s oceans. After all, it was a massive undersea earthquake off the western coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra that resulted in the massive tsunami tidal wave the killed more than 250,000 people in 2004.

And more close to home, the 1999 earthquake in Izmit Turkey resulted in more than 17,000 known deaths, causing widespread devastation. And like this earthquake and the recent ones in Iran and China, the exact death toll will never be known as literally thousands are buried under the rubble of collapsed buildings and will never be found.

We bloggers at Green Prophet usually dedicate our efforts writing about positive news: advances in clean technology,  regional environmental issues, and such. But events like the one in Haiti makes us inclined to pause and reflect on how these sudden natural calamities not only cause widespread grief and sorrow, but also bring people together in what can be referred as their finest hour, to rescue those trapped, provide food and medical aid for the sick and injured survivors.

So far, we learn Israel, Turkey and Lebanon, are three Middle East countries to pledge aid. Also the UAE is setting up an “Air Bridge” to take relief supplies to Haiti.