Jean Louisnor Faldor was not home the day the earth shook in
Port-au-Prince.  But in a shaky voice he says he wishes he had
been there to protect his family.

"I felt violent shaking and lots of noise, but I thought it was
a bulldozer or some other heavy machinery doing construction,"
remembers Faldor.

When he looked around and realized that everyone was running
every which way and that it was an earthquake, his heart began
pounding inside his chest.

"I remembered that my wife was at home. I ran home and found my
house had completely crumbled and my wife and 13-year-old son were
trapped underneath," Faldor recounts slowly and methodically, as if
he has told this story countless times in the past few days.

His wife and youngest son perished in the 12 January earthquake,
and so Faldor and his two older sons moved into an improvised
settlement of makeshift shelters near the airport where some 500
families (2,500 persons) wait for help from the Government of Haiti
and the international community.

"The only thing I own are my pants," Faldor says. "My sons and I
have been here since Wednesday, 14 January. The night of the
earthquake we tried to rescue my wife and son and eventually fell
asleep on the street in front of our destroyed home," he adds.

Faldor and his sister, who also lost her home and is living with
her family in the same settlement, say the Haitian Red Cross
distributed water and tarpaulins.

IOM is working with 70 partner organizations to distribute basic
household goods, such as kitchen sets, hygiene kits, jerry cans and
blankets to people living in the spontaneous settlements.  As
of 25 January, aid organizations have already distributed 54,000
jerry cans, 20,000 kitchen sets, 42,000 hygiene kits, 51,000
blankets, 27,000 mattresses and bedrolls, and 6,000 mosquito
nets.

The residents are worried because the impromptu settlement was
erected on private land, so they are not sure if they will be able
to remain there while more permanent shelter solutions are
found.

In a race against time, as the rainy season begins in May, IOM
and its partners have already distributed more than 10,000 family
tents, close to 52,000 tarpaulins, as well as thousands of ropes
and toolkits, mosquito nets and kitchen sets. A further 37,000
tarpaulins have been consigned to aid agencies; and 15,000 tents
and 63,000 tarpaulins are in stock. 176,000 tarpaulins, while more
than 40,000 tents are expected to arrive in the coming days and
weeks.

The Government of Haiti estimates the death toll from the
earthquake to be over 112,000.  An estimated 700,000 Haitians
are living in over 500 spontaneous settlements in the capital,
Port-au-Prince.  A further 300,000 fled the city in search of
safety and assistance; an estimated 90,000 to 100,000 are staying
with friends or relatives throughout the country.