DThe confirmed death toll from the earthquake in Haiti on Saturday increased again by more than 500 to 1941. The Civil Defense Department of the Caribbean State announced the news on Tuesday and revised the number of injured to more than 9,900. The day before, she said that 1,419 people had died. On Tuesday night, tropical storm Grace swept across the disaster-stricken area of the Tiburon Peninsula in southern Haiti, causing floods in some areas. Search and rescue work continued. Thousands of people who lost their homes in the earthquake can only protect themselves with tents and tarpaulins.
However, there is a silver lining: According to the Civil Defense Department, on Tuesday morning (local time) three days after the earthquake, 16 people were rescued from the ruins of a former United Nations building in the village of Breffett. Rescue also gradually reached the earthquake zone. Based on its own information, the United States Development Cooperation Agency (USAID) flew 52 people for medical treatment. Hospitals in the area were overloaded and partially damaged. Many patients lie in the inner courtyard of the clinic. “The humanitarian situation is very worrying,” said Interim Prime Minister Ariel Henry’s office.
About 37,000 houses were destroyed
The magnitude 7.2 earthquake occurred on Saturday morning (local time) near the city of Saint-Louis-du-Sud, east of Les Cayes, with a focal depth of approximately 10 kilometers. According to the civil defense authorities, 37,000 houses were destroyed and nearly 47,000 houses were damaged. According to UNICEF, 1.2 million people are affected. The area destroyed by Hurricane Matthew five years ago has suffered tremendously. According to Caritas International, food, drinking water, tents and medical first aid are needed.
We are with Haiti, the poorest country in the United States earthquake The magnitude of the earthquake in January 2010 was 7.0, more than 220,000 people died, and more than 1 million people were left homeless. The reconstruction work has been hit hard by corruption and waste.
Missing or damaged infrastructure after the new earthquake may hinder rescue and rescue operations. As gangs compete for territory, the highway connecting the capital Port-au-Prince and southern Haiti is often impassable. According to United Nations data, in June alone, this violence caused about 15,000 people to flee.
The Haitian human rights organization RNDDH criticized the government’s handling of the recent disaster as “a mess.” “You can decide for yourself,” it said of the earthquake victims. The desperate wounded waited in front of the understaffed and poorly equipped hospital.
Haiti’s already severely underfunded health system is overwhelmed by the recent worsening epidemic. In addition, a deep political crisis intensified after a commando assassinated the President at the residence of President Jovenel Moïse on July 7.
