A Christmas tree with tinsel lay forlornly on the ground with what lookedlike small presents around that had scattered onto the floor. Next toit, a table was laid out with plates, food and cutlery as though thefamily were ready to come back for dinner. I could see all this clearly asthe front wall of the house had exploded and was pushed out onto the streetexposing the family dining room.
It had been like this for the last four days, ever since Haiti's capital,Port-au-Prince, was hit by a devastating earthquake, said my colleague.Whether the inhabitants of the house, surrounded by collapsed buildings anddebris, would ever come back was quite another question.
It's estimated that two million people were affected by the massiveearthquake that hit the Haitian capital earlier this week. Thousands arethought to have been killed, many were injured and the rest of the city'sdazed residents are still reeling from the shock of it all.
Many walk the streets, some barefoot, balancing on their heads bagscontaining what belongings they could grab before they fled and clutchingplastic containers for water. Large numbers are also wearing masks to stopinhaling the thick grey smoke that lingered long after the quake. Themasks also offered some protection from the thick stench of dead bodiesthat lined the streets in the immediate aftermath of the quake and arestill turning up wrapped in sheets or pieces of clothing.
It's thought as many as 30,000 may have been killed in the earthquake whileothers are still trapped under the debris of collapsed buildings.
Some foreign search and rescue crews who had been working to recover thosetrapped under wrecked buildings at what was the capital's top hotel, theMontana, told me that cries could still be heard from those buried beneaththe rubble across the capital.
Some aid is now getting through to the city. Much of it is coming by truckfrom the neighbouring Dominican Republic. Some supplies have started to beflown in via the capital's airport which was affected by the quake and hasreopened for humanitarian flights after several days of closure
The aid agency Oxfam is flying in emergency experts and is starting todistribute water at some of the large makeshift camps that have sprung upat parks and outdoor areas and hospitals.
The needs are enormous as most basic services just aren't functioning. Atthe best of times, daily life in Haiti for the 80% or so of the populationwho have to live on less than two dollars a day, is a daily struggle.
The impact of the quake has made things even worse.
Haiti needs more than a quick fix of emergency aid. It will be many yearsbefore the country can really get back on its feet again and fully recoverfrom this massive shock.