A powerful 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck Haiti on Saturday, killing at least 304 people, injuring at least 1,800 others and destroying hundreds of homes. People in the Caribbean island nation took to the streets to seek safety and help rescue people trapped under the rubble of collapsed homes, hotels and other structures.
Saturday’s earthquake devastated the southwestern part of the hemisphere’s poorest country, nearly devastated some towns and triggered landslides that hampered rescue efforts in two of the hardest-hit communities. The disaster also added to the plight of Haitians, who were already grappling with the coronavirus pandemic, the assassination of a president, and deep poverty.
The US Geological Survey said the quake’s epicenter was about 125 kilometers (78 miles) west of the capital, Port-au-Prince. The widespread damage could get worse early next week, with Tropical Storm Grace predicted to reach Haiti late Monday or early Tuesday.
The tremors were felt throughout the day and late into the night, when many people now homeless or fearful of the collapse of their broken homes stayed on the streets to sleep – if their nerves allowed them.
In the badly damaged coastal town of Les Cays, in the darkness that had only been punctuated by flashlights, some praised God for surviving the earthquake.
“We are alive today because God loves us,” said Marie-Claire Jean-Pierre, whose house collapsed a moment after she and her son stepped outside when they felt the ground shaking.
rescue efforts
Prime Minister Ariel Henry said he was delivering aid to areas where cities had been destroyed and hospitals were overcrowded with visiting patients. A former senator chartered a private plane to take the wounded from Les Cays to Port-au-Prince for medical assistance.
Henry declared a month-long state of emergency for the entire country and said he would not seek international help until the extent of the damage was known.
“The most important thing is to get as many survivors as possible under the rubble,” Henry said. “We have learned that local hospitals, especially Les Cays, are full of injured, fractured people.”
The director of Haiti’s Office of Civil Defense, Jerry Chandler, told reporters Saturday night that the death toll stood at 304. Rescuers and passersby were able to rescue several people from the rubble.
Chandler said the partial count of structural damage included at least 860 destroyed homes and more than 700 damaged. Hospitals, schools, offices and churches were also affected.
On the small island of Ile-ए-Vache, about 6.5 miles (10.5 kilometers) from Les Cayes, the earthquake damaged a seaside resort popular among Haitian officials, business leaders, diplomats and humanitarian activists. Abka Bay Resort owner Fernand Sajos said by telephone that nine of the hotel’s 30 rooms collapsed, but added that they were empty at the time and no one was injured.
“They disappeared – just like that,” said Sajous.
The men of Les Cays tried to pull guests from the rubble of a collapsed hotel, but as the sun went down, they were only able to recover the body of a 7-year-old girl whose home was behind the facility.
“I have eight children, and I was looking for the last one,” said Jean-Claude Daniel through tears. “I will never see him alive again. The earthquake ruined my life. It took a child away from me.”
hospital overwhelmed
The news of overwhelmed hospitals comes as Haiti grapples with the pandemic and lacks the resources to deal with it. Just last month, the nation of 11 million people received the first batch of coronavirus vaccines donated by the US, through the United Nations Program for Low-Income Countries.
The earthquake also occurred just a month after President Jovenel Mosse. shot to death In his own home, sending the country into political chaos. His widow, Martyn Mosse, who was seriously injured in the attack, posted a message on Twitter calling for unity among Haitians: “Let’s put our shoulders together to bring about solidarity.”
When he boarded a plane bound for Les Cays, Henry stated that he wanted “structured solidarity” to ensure that the response was coordinated so as to avoid confusion. devastating 2010 earthquake, when aid was slow to reach residents after 300,000 Haitians were killed.
America promised help
US President Joe Biden authorized an immediate response and named USAID Administrator Samantha Power as the senior official coordinating the US effort to help Haiti. USAID will help assess the damage and assist with reconstruction, said Biden, who called the United States “a close and enduring friend to the people of Haiti.”
Argentina and Chile were also among the first countries to promise help.
Humanitarian activists said gang activity in the seaside district of Martisante, west of the Haitian capital, was also complicating relief efforts.
“No one can travel through the area,” UNICEF spokesman Nadiaga Sec in Port-au-Prince said over the phone. “We can just fly away or go the other way.”
Sec said information on deaths and damage in Port-au-Prince due to spotty internet service was slow coming, but UNICEF planned to send medical supplies to two hospitals in Les Cayes and Jeremy in the south .
People in Port-au-Prince felt the tremors and many took to the streets in fear, although there was no damage.
Haiti, where many people live in difficult conditions, is vulnerable to earthquakes and hurricanes. It was hit in 2018 by a magnitude 5.9 earthquake that killed more than a dozen people.
By late Saturday evening, the island had felt six tremors of magnitude 5.0 and greater than 4.0 on the Richter scale.
Haitian civil engineer and geologist Claude Prepetit warned of danger from broken structures.
“More or less intense aftershocks can be expected for a month,” he said, cautioning that some buildings, “severely damaged during the quake, could collapse during the tremors.”