St. John’s University is collecting supplies to send to Haiti, which was devastated by a 7.0 magnitude earthquake on Tuesday. The first shipment of supplies will be sent this afternoon, and should arrive in Haiti this weekend, said Nashia Whittenburg, associate director of Multicultural Affairs, in an e-mail sent to the University this afternoon.

The supply drive is an ongoing effort with Muliticultural Affairs, Haitain Society and HARAYA. The drive is being held Monday-Thursday from 8:30-4:30 p.m. and Friday from 8:30-3 p.m. in the D’Angelo Center, Suite 124.

“The Caribbean nation of Haiti is in absolute need of our assistance,” wrote Whittenburg in the e-mail. “As a Catholic Vincentian University we must accept the responsibility of helping our neighbors in need.”

According to Hadassah St. Hubert, a graduate student and member of the Haitian Society at St. John’s, the most immediate supplies that the University is looking to collect are canned food items and medical supplies. Other supplies being collected include portable spotlights, clothes, batteries and toiletries.

“I don’t think people understand the gravity [of this],” said Daphne Pierre, a graduate student who has been helping with the drive. “This was their capital, their financial center.”

For more information on how to get involved and for a full list of accepted items for donation, visit St. John’s Central.