The first foreign aid workers have begun to arrive in Haiti to help the victims of Tuesday's devastating earthquake.

A spokesman for the United Nations said the aid effort was a race against time. The UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says tents are urgently needed to house people who have been made homeless.

The United States has launched a major relief operation and many other countries have pledged assistance. Great Britain has promised seven million euros' worth of aid and Israel is sending a team of over 200 relief workers and medical staff.

The quake which registered 7 on the Richter scale is thought to have resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of people. The International Red Cross has opened a special website for survivors designed to help relatives make contact with each other.

Many foreigners, who were in Haiti when the quake hit, are among the missing. They include more than 100 UN staff. Many countries are reporting nationals who are unaccounted for. The country's communication network remains severely disrupted.

photo: devastation in Haiti (ANP/EPA)