A deadly earthquake has left Haiti in shock and tears. More than a week after the earthquake hit the southern Haitian city of Les Cayes, more than 2,200 have lost lives and around 12,268 people were injured.
Locals told the media agency Reuters that after more than a week the country is still struggling for a normal life.
Haiti Prime Minister Ariel Henry said, “Haiti is now on its knees. The earthquake that devastated a large part of the south of the country proves once again our limits, and how fragile we are.”
The earthquake that hit the Caribbean island was 7.2 magnitudes high and destroyed around ten thousand buildings and also triggered landslides. The area is just 160 km to the west of the capital city Port-au-Prince.
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Rescue and relief operations are ongoing, informed the country's civil protection agency.
The people of Haiti were still recovering from 2010, a massive earthquake that took away the lives of more than 200,000 people.
People are witnessing a shortage of medical aid, hospitals and doctors. Many quake victims were seen lying in the patios, verandas and corridors of the hospital due to a shortage of space. The country is in desperate need of international aid. Dr Barth Green, president of Project Medishare, said, “The hospitals are all broken and collapsed, the operating rooms aren't functional, and then if you bring tents, it's hurricane season, they can blow right away.”
Around 30,000 families became homeless after the quake. Schools, offices, churches have been destroyed which has forced the residents to take shelter in tents. They lack basic necessities like food, clean drinking water, and shelter from the rain.
Meanwhile, the United Nations has allocated an emergency fund of $8 million to provide relief for affected people. Prime Minister Ariel Henry has guaranteed of expanding more aid than what was given during the 2010 Haiti earthquake.