Haiti, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, experienced a 7.0 cataclysmic earthquake on January 12, 2010. The disaster rocked the nations capital and shook the small country to its core killing more than 230,000 people and displacing several million.

In pain after a fall in the ruins of Port-au-Prince, a young looter hides from the police in fear of being killed.

My pictures document the eruption of violence and looting when the hungry, desperate and frustrated people of Haiti, unassisted by their country´s leaders or helped by the international community, decided to find their own means of survival in the badly damaged capital Port au Prince.

The Bel Air neighbourhood in downtown Port-au-Prince has seen its share of troubles including poverty, high unemployment, gang violence and other social ills. But nothing prepared the usually resilient community for this earthquake. Many of the residents were forced to flee their homes and are now camping out in open-air settlements. Residents who have tried to return have been scared off by the frequent aftershocks.

The Haitian authorities, already weak and reliant on UN forces, are now crippled by heavy casualties and widespread destruction of infrastructure while international peacekeepers are focused on disaster relief.

Looters fighting inside a appliances store in Port au Prince Bel

Up to two million children are feared orphaned or at least separated from their parents in Haiti.Most are sleeping on streets next to dead bodies without shelter, food or water, UK’s Save the Children charity said.

Destruction in Port au Prince

Invisible injuries to the psyches of the survivors. Emotional wounds may be the slowest to develop, but they can also be among the toughest to heal.

Interview with A-Magasinet in Norway