A severe earthquake shook the south of the Caribbean state of Haiti this Saturday. The US agency USGS gave the strength as 7.2. The authorities initially issued a tsunami warning, but it was lifted a little later. The US National Weather Service (NOAA) advises people to remain cautious. In the coastal areas near the earthquake, there could still be minor fluctuations in sea level of up to 30 centimeters, it said.
According to official information, the quake occurred near Saint-Louis-du-Sud, around 100 kilometers west of the capital Port-au-Prince, and at a depth of around ten kilometers. It could be felt all over Haiti as far as Jamaica and the Dominican Republic. At 8.29 a.m. (local time) the earth shook, after about 20 minutes a second time, according to media reports.
US authorities consider high number of victims to be possible
According to reports, numerous houses were said to have been destroyed by the quake. The exact extent of the damage was initially unclear. According to CNN the Haiti Civil Protection Agency said there had been deaths and major damage. In photos and in videos that posted on social networks, collapsed houses and damage to roads and other infrastructure can be seen.
The US agency USGS considers a high number of victims to be possible after the severe earthquake on the coast of Haiti. She called red alert on Saturday with a view to possible deaths. The agency also referred to the devastating earthquake that struck Haiti in 2010, which had a similar magnitude of 7.3.
At the center of the earthquake 11 years ago was the densely populated capital Port-au-Prince. Around 222,000 people died and more than 300,000 were injured as a result of the quake. More than a million people lost their homes. The damage from the quake was estimated at $ 8 billion. Reconstruction got off to a slow start, also due to the political instability.
The Caribbean Haiti with its around eleven million inhabitants and its recent natural disasters is the poorest country in the western hemisphere. The country is also currently in a serious political crisis after President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated on July 7th.