The loss of life toll in Haiti has risen to greater than 1,900 after a 7.2 magnitude earthquake

Roommates, conditions in Haiti worsen five days after a massive earthquake struck the southwestern part of the Caribbean island. CNN reports that officials have estimated the death toll at 1,941 people, while countless are still missing. The country’s hospitals are reportedly overwhelmed as nearly 10,000 survivors were injured in the earthquake.

The 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit around 8:30 am on Saturday morning – more 11.5 years after the 2010 earthquake. The most recent earthquake was 10.2 miles deep and its epicenter stretched 12.2 miles.

To put the context in context, the 2010 natural disaster reportedly killed more than 200,000 people with a magnitude of 7.0 and destroyed nearly 300,000 buildings that are beyond repair.

“After a little over a decade, Haiti is staggering again,” said Henrietta Fore, executive director of the United Nations Children’s Fund. “And this disaster coincides with political instability, increasing gang violence, alarmingly high malnutrition rates among children and the COVID-19 pandemic – for which Haiti only received 500,000 doses when it needed far more.”

Now the island is facing similar devastation. According to UNICEF, nearly 1.2 million people, including 540,000 children, are in some way affected by the earthquake.

According to Haiti’s disaster control director Dr. Claude Predtit are currently about 135,000 families displaced from at least 75,000 destroyed homes.

Officials from the main hospital in one of the country’s cities, Jeremie, told CNN Tuesday that 84 people are awaiting treatment. Before the disaster, it only served about ten people a day.

Now that every bed is full and some patients are lying on the rubble-covered floors, a doctor says “at least a third” of patients will either lose limbs or succumb to their injuries if they are not transported to a better-equipped facility.

To make matters worse, Haiti experienced strong winds and heavy rains on Monday evening and Tuesday from Tropical Storm Grace. The destruction caused by the earthquake combined with recent weather conditions made it difficult for authorities and organizations to assess damage and provide the necessary assistance.

That hectic time for the country comes just over a month after Haitian President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated at his home in Port-au-Prince. His wife was also shot but survived after receiving treatment in the United States for her injuries.

Would you like updates straight to your text inbox? Call us at 917-722-8057 or click here to join!