Up to 50,000 killed in Haiti earthquake: WHO

GENEVA (Agencies) The World Health Organization has estimated that between 40,000 to 50,000 people in Haiti have been killed by the 7.0 earthquake, the United Nations said Sunday as rescue teams worked round the clock in the hopes of finding survivors.

"WHO/PAHO (Pan American Health Organization) estimates that the number of dead ranges between 40,000 and 50,000 people," said a situation report issued by the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Meanwhile more than 70 people have been pulled out alive from the debris by the teams, around a dozen more from a day ago, when the number of people rescued by the international teams stood at 58.

"The morale of the rescue team is very high despite the hardship and the conditions. They remain steadfast since lives have been rescued out of the rubble," Elisabeth Byrs, spokeswoman of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs told AFP.

"We don't give up hope to find more survivors," stressed Byrs.

Some 43 international teams comprising 1,739 rescue workers and 161 dogs have already scoured 60 percent of the worst affected areas hit by the earthquake.

Byrs explained that the way the buildings had collapsed in the earthquake had added "sufficient void spaces that allow for trapped victims to remain alive."