Grace hits Haiti with death and major floods
Print Edition
Heavy rains lashed Haiti last night, complicating rescue efforts and drenching thousands left homeless by a devastating earthquake that killed at least 1,419 people, as hopes dimmed for survivors.
Tropical Depression Grace churned over the regions of southwest Haiti worst-hit by Saturday鈥檚 quake of magnitude 7.2, whipping devastated towns with high winds and torrential rains, causing flooding in at least one area.
The earthquake brought down tens of thousands of buildings in the poorest country in the Americas, which is still recovering from a major quake 11 years ago that killed more than 200,000 people.
The latest disaster comes just over a month after Haiti was plunged into political turmoil by the assassination of President Jovenel Moise on July 7.
Several major hospitals were severely damaged, hampering humanitarian efforts, as were the focal points of many shattered communities, such as churches and schools.
Haitian authorities said on Monday that 1,419 deaths had been confirmed, with some 6,900 people injured.
Hopes fading
As hopes began to dim of finding significant numbers of survivors among the wreckage, the storm impeded rescuers in the seaside city of Les Cayes, about 150 kilometers west of the capital Port-au-Prince, which bore the brunt of the quake.
The storm is expected to dump up to 38 centimeters of water on parts of Haiti, creating a risk of flash floods, according to the US National Hurricane Centre.
Rescue workers from across Haiti were digging alongside residents through the rubble on Monday evening in a bid to reach bodies, though few voiced hope of finding anyone alive. A smell of dust and decomposing bodies permeated the air.
鈥淲e came from all over to help: from the north, from Port-au Prince, from everywhere,鈥 said Maria Fleurant, a firefighter from northern Haiti.
As heavy rain began to fall, emergency workers pulled a blood-stained pillow from under the rubble, followed by the corpse of a three-year-old boy who appeared to have died in his sleep during the earthquake.
Shortly after, as the rain intensified, the workers left.
With about 37,312 houses destroyed by the quake, according to Haitian authorities, and many of those still unexcavated, the death toll is expected to rise.
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