Deadly earthquake rocks Haiti; Flooding downpours may complicate recovery efforts
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck off the northern coast of Haiti late Saturday, killing at least 15 people and injuring over 300 others.
Buildings have reportedly been destroyed by the temblor, which struck 12 miles (19 km) northwest of Port-de-Paix, Haiti, shortly after 8:00 p.m. local time on Saturday, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).
Port-de-Paix is the capital of the Nord-Ouest department of Haiti and is home to over 460,000 people.
The location of the earthquake that struck off the northern coast of Haiti late Saturday. (Image/USGS)
Several aftershocks caused panic among residents on Sunday, with the strongest being magnitude 5.2.
A statement issued by Haiti's civil protection agency said that houses have been destroyed or damaged in Port-de-Paix, Gros-Morne, Chansolme and Turtle Island. The Saint-Michel church in Plaisance is among the buildings damaged.
Part of a hospital and school have also collapsed, the Associated Press (AP) reported. A police station in Port-de-Paix was also damaged.
The damage to hospitals combined with power outages has created a dangerous situation for medical professionals and those injured by the earthquake.
“I feel like my life is not safe here,” nun Maryse Alsaint, director of the San Gabriel National School in Gros-Morne, told the AP.
President Jovenel Moise is urging people to donate blood in the wake of the disaster, according to the AP.
Light shaking was felt in the country's capital of Port-au-Prince and in the Dominican Republic, but no damage occurred in these areas.
No tsunami warning was issued after the earthquake, which occurred at a rather shallow depth of 7 miles (12 km) below the earth's surface.
This is the one of the strongest earthquakes to rattle Haiti since the 2010 earthquake that killed more than 200,000 people, according to BBC News.
The weather will not cooperate for cleanup and recovery efforts, with downpours expected to douse the affected area each day into Tuesday. The downpours could be heavy enough to trigger flash flooding.
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