Prime characteristics of the aloha spirit are generosity and compassion, so the catastrophic earthquake that struck Haiti on Tuesday should trigger an outpouring of assistance. Delivery of goods to the surviving victims has encountered staggering problems, but that ought not to keep Hawaii residents from quickly helping pay for water, food, temporary shelter, clothing and medical supplies for our fellow islanders in the days ahead.

Scenes of bodies laying abandoned in Haiti's capital of Port-au-Prince have stunned people around the world. The New York Times reported that when Haitians waiting on the grounds of a hospital died, their bodies were simply dragged and added to the hundreds that were piled up outside the city's completely full morgue next door.

The international Red Cross estimated 45,000 to 50,000 people were killed; an estimated 3 million Haitians have been affected by the earthquake. Worries mount about food and water for survivors.

The consequences of the 7.0 magnitude earthquake were made worse by the substandard housing in Port-au-Prince, where its mayor had said that 60 percent of buildings were unsafe without severe shaking of the earth. Nearly all the public buildings collapsed, including the parliament building, presidential palace, schools and hospitals, as well as the Haitian headquarters of the United Nations.

A sturdy infrastructure will need to be built almost from scratch in what has long been recognized as the poorest nation in the Western hemisphere. Obviously, financial assistance will have to extend far beyond the immediate necessities in the aftermath of nature's wrecking ball.

Prior to the earthquake, neighboring countries, private organizations and international groups had committed to a plan for Haiti's long-term development. Former President Bill Clinton was named U.N. envoy for Haiti last year to help develop that plan in various ways.

“;These efforts will need to be amended because of Tuesday's disaster, but they cannot be abandoned,”; Clinton wrote in an op-ed piece in yesterday's Washington Post.

To be part of the short-term relief effort, Hawaii citizens can call in donations to the Hawaii Red Cross at 739-8109, or send them by mail to the American Red Cross, 4155 Diamond Head Road, Honolulu, HI 96816, specifying Haiti relief. In the long term, people can donate to the U.N. effort through Clinton's foundation or by texting “;Haiti”; to 20222 to donate $10 through their telephone bills.