The BLEA has been personally affected by the tragedy as three of their members of Haitian descent have been unable to contact family back home. One man who still doesn’t know if his mother was claimed by the quake has chosen not to do interviews with the media because it is too painful for him. 

In response to concerns that desperation in the destroyed city will lead to lawlessness, Claxton says that such issues are secondary in the grand scheme of the overall rescue effort. 

“You have to put it in perspective,” he said. “How do you loot the devastated and destroyed? When you see members of your family who are sick and dying, you have an obligation to take care of them — to feed them. People are fighting to survive. They are fighting to help other people.” 

Councilman James Sanders (D-Laurelton) and the Ad Hoc Committee to Save Haiti is asking members of the Queens community to donate the following items in support of the emergency relief effort — bottled water (in bulk); toiletries such as toothbrushes, toothpaste, feminine napkins, soap, deodorant, lotion and hand sanitizer; diapers; food; clothing and undergarments, socks and shoes, first aid items such as Band-aids gauze, adhesive tape, disposable gloves, masks, alcohol, intravenous needles, local anesthesia, Advil, aspirin, Tylenol and Motrin; and blankets. 

Donations can be dropped of at Sanders’ office at 234-26 Merrick Blvd. in Rosedale, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; the Church of the Nazarene at 1414 Central Avenue in Far Rockaway, Monday, Wednesday and Friday 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.; and the Bethesda Church of God at 226-09 Merrick Blvd. in Laurelton, Friday 8 to 11 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monetary donations will also be accepted. Make checks payable to: The Ad Hoc Committee to Save Haiti. 

Haitian Americans United For Progress, a group in Cambria Heights that works to improve the lives of immigrants by providing them with educational, cultural, networking and support services, is leading the local relief effort with the help of some area officials. 

City Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) is helping the organization coordinate its assistance. 

“We certainly live in tough economic times, but we are also citizens of the world and, collectively if each of us make a small contribution, we will be able to help our Haitian neighbors who have been devastated by this tragedy,” Comrie said in a statement. 

Anyone who is interested in donating supplies can call Comrie’s office at (718) 776-3700 to sign up and they will be called once the drive is underway. 

State Senate President Malcolm Smith (D-Jamaica) also met with HAUP to discuss how aid might be distributed, and is recommending that the public donate to the Red Cross and Catholic Charities to help the victims. 

“The devastation that they face is almost unimaginable, but the managing of it, the response if you will, is the most critical and essential element at this juncture,” Smith said in a statement. “We all need to do our parts.” 

Councilman Tom White Jr. (D-South Ozone Park) is contacting drug companies in an effort to collect medical supplies, but will hold off on shipping them to Haiti until supply lines and security have been established. 

“I didn’t understand the magnitude of the 7.0 earthquake until I saw the damage on CNN,” he said. “I had no idea that the country had no infrastructure — or very little. ... It is like a wartorn country.”