More 'miracle survivors' pulled from rubble
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More than eight days after the massive earthquake in Haiti, rescue teams on Thursday are still searching frantically after more survivors were pulled from the rubble.
On Wednesday, a five-year-old boy was freed by his uncle and taken to a local hospital.
The uncle said he discovered the boy in a small void under the rubble of a house, but the boy's father and mother were believed to have died.
The boy remained miraculously unharmed, but was severely dehydrated and dysphoric.
Meanwhile, an 11-year-old girl was dug out of ruins by her neighbors.
The girl was being treated at the Lambert clinic, where she lay on a bed in the clinic's corridor, occasionally crying out with nightmares.
"It truly is a miracle, she came back to life bit by bit. She is blessed by God," said surgeon Dominique Jean.
Also on Wednesday, the Nicaraguan Humanitarian Rescue Unit (UHR) rescued two university students who had been trapped under tons of cement.
UHR chief General Mario Perezcassar said the two female students, 19 and 21 years old, were found in the basement of a university in Port-au-Prince.
"After almost eight days, it is almost a miracle. For us, it was a great satisfaction because we thought that we would not find anybody else alive," Perezcassar said.
Hoteline Losana, 25, was found in the wreckage of a supermarket late Tuesday. She was singing quietly when being carried out of the ruins by French rescuers.
According to the rescuers, Losana remained "conscious and in good form."
A U.N. spokeswoman in Geneva said on Wednesday international teams had rescued 121 people from the debris of collapsed buildings.
More than a week after the 7.3-magnitude earthquake struck the island, countries and international organizations are now seeking to ramp up relief efforts in Haiti.
However, the situation in the Caribbean nation remains grim.
It is reported that food has reached only about 7.5 percent of those in need.
Blocked roads, mountainous terrain, collapsed infrastructure and disrupted telecommunication services have prevented aid from quickly reaching the victims.
Moreover, aid work has also been frustrated by a lack of leadership due to personnel losses among national and global authorities.
Haunted by the growing threat of looting and violence, governments and aid organizations are expected to step up efforts to deliver aid to the most needy with the least delay.
Haiti's Civil Defense Department Tuesday said the quake had killed 75,000 people, injured 250,000 others and left a million homeless.
According to Haitian officials, the final death toll may reach between 100,000 and 200,000. But relief workers warned the death toll could continue to increase.
Medical clinics have 12-day patient backlogs, untreated injuries are festering, and makeshift camps housing thousands of survivors could foster disease, according to medical workers.
They said the next health risk could include outbreaks of diarrhea, respiratory tract infections and other diseases among Haitian people who live in overcrowded camps with poor sanitation.
U.N. spokesman Martin Nesirky said in New York on Wednesday the death toll of U.N. staffers in the earthquake had risen to 49, and more than 300 others are still missing or unaccounted for.
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