You will have undoubtedly seen in the news that on Tuesday 12th January a 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck Haiti, including the densely populated capital Port-au-Prince. Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere, greatly increasing the chances that people will die in the aftermath of a natural disaster and with the quake hitting at 4.53 PM local time, the start of rush hour when Port-au-Prince’s narrow streets are filled with commuters and school children, it probably couldn’t have struck at a worse time. It’s feared the death toll will rise above 100,000.

Slums, hotels and embassies alike have been levelled. The infrastructure - such as it is - has been disrupted and a massive humanitarian aid effort has begun to ensure survivors - including the not insubstantial number of charity workers already in the region - get food, clean water, emergency shelter, medical care and other support.

So please dig deep and donate now.