More on how to help in Haiti....

The Canadian government will match donations.....

Aid agencies say Canadians are donating so generously to the Haitian disaster-relief efforts that their Internet servers are periodically crashing.

Kieran Green of the Humanitarian Coalition, which includes Care Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam Quebec and Save the Children, says the donations are "quite literally overwhelming."

However, the servers are back up and the coalition is pleading with Canadians to keep trying, because the agencies need the money to help people in the earthquake-shattered nation.

Doctors without Borders is reporting the same massive response, with spokeswoman Avril Benoit twittering that they are "white-knuckling it" as the agency's website "teeters from overload."

World Vision, which is using social media campaigns on Facebook and Twitter, says the number of donations coming in are 10 times the usual.

Canadian Red Cross spokeswoman Katie Kallio says within the first 24 hours, $1 million was raised to support disaster relieve efforts by the agency.

The Humanitarian Coalition says $340,000 has been donated in the same time period, but that number does not include separate donations to the coalition members.

The federal government says it will match any donations made to registered charitable groups for the Haitian disaster from Jan. 12 to Feb. 12, up to a maximum of $50 million.

However, Kallio says this is a major disaster and more money will be needed to help up to three million Haitians - a third of the country's population - affected by the earthquake.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade has compiled a guide designed to help the public avoid scams and ensure their donations are of maximum value.

It can be found online at international.gc.ca.