[Guest post by DRJ]

A 7.0 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Japan and an 8.8 magnitude quake off the Chilean coast sparked tsunami warnings in both nations, although the Japanese warning appears to have been rescinded. There is no tsunami warning for Alaska or the West Coast of the United States as a result of the earthquake in Chile [UPDATE BY PATTERICO: there is now a warning for the West Coast], but there may be an impact in Hawaii.

– DRJ

[Guest post by DRJ]

Happy Valentine’s Day to one and all.

– DRJ

[Guest post by DRJ]

The Massachusetts’ election and the Haitian earthquake have dominated the news and blogs, but there are other stories including one that affects many California readers — Los Angeles rain:

“Street flooding was reported across the region, including in Burbank, the Bixby Knolls section of Long Beach, areas south of Long Beach Airport, as well as Sunland and San Pedro.

The storm ripped part of the roof off an industrial building in Paramount and flooded the southbound 710 Freeway around Alondra Boulevard. Flooding was also reported on the 710 near Willow Street in Long Beach. [Updated at 6:35 p.m.: The California Highway Patrol said the 405 Freeway south is flooded in Long Beach at Spring Street and that traffic was being diverted.]

Other freeways reported less serious flooding, producing a grim evening commute.”

Any stories to share?

– DRJ

[Guest post by DRJ]

The man in charge of America’s military relief efforts in Haiti, Lt.Gen. P.K. Keen, commented on how many people have died as a result of the Haitian earthquake:

“As the numbers of dead and injured in Haiti continue to climb, Lt. General P.K. Keen, the man charge of military relief efforts there says, “we are going to have to be prepared for the worst”. When I asked General Keen about death toll estimates ranging between 150,000 and 200,000 people, Keen said, “I think the international community is looking at those figures, and I think that’s a start point.”

President Obama has named former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush to raise funds for Haitian relief. The former Presidents have established a website to collect donations for this cause.

– DRJ

[Guest post by DRJ]

TV evangelist Pat Robertson has a flair for saying controversial things: He once suggested that Ariel Sharon’s stroke was divine punishment for “dividing God’s land” and giving away Gaza to the Palestinians. He also wondered if America’s abortion rate could have provoked Hurricane Katrina and the terrorist attacks on the United States. And now, following the earthquake in Haiti, Robertson has once again suggested a disaster might be due to more than bad luck:

“The Haitians “were under the heel of the French. You know, Napoleon III and whatever,” Robertson said on his broadcast Wednesday. “And they got together and swore a pact to the devil. They said, ‘We will serve you if you will get us free from the French.’ True story. And so, the devil said, ‘OK, it’s a deal.’”

Native Haitians defeated French colonists in 1804 and declared independence.

“You know, the Haitians revolted and got themselves free. But ever since, they have been cursed by one thing after the other.”

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs commented it was “utterly stupid” to think a nation’s actions could cause it to be cursed.

Apparently Jeremiah Wright (”God Damn America” and the United States brought on the 9/11 attacks with its own “terrorism”) could not be reached for comment.

– DRJ

[Guest post by DRJ]

The reports following yesterday’s earthquake in Haiti show a nation in chaos with an unknown number of dead:

“Dazed survivors wandered past dead bodies in rubble-strewn streets Wednesday, crying for loved ones, and rescuers desperately searched collapsed buildings as fear rose that the death toll from Haiti’s devastating earthquake could reach into the tens of thousands.”

Even Haiti’s President has been left homeless but his immediate concern is that more people will be left hurt, homeless, or sick:

“Speaking from the streets of Port-au-Prince, a visibly shaken Haitian President René Préval told reporters Wednesday afternoon “it’s too early” to guess at the number of earthquake casualties in his country.
***
Asked what he now considered the biggest risk to his country, Préval said: “that the buildings will continue to collapse . . . and for an epidemic.”

While an unknown number of people remain trapped in the rubble, there are growing fears regarding lawlessness and street violence:

“As darkness fell Wednesday, Mario Anderson, Haitian national chief of police, grew concerned. He said many officers had been injured and maintaining security in the chaos may become a challenge: “We have many prisoners who are on the streets – it’s about 1,000; some have been in prison a long time.”

The number of homeless wandering the streets is growing, too, he said. “The situation is bad,” he told CNN.”

The International Red Cross estimates at least a third of Haiti’s nine million people will need aid.

– DRJ

PS – America responds.