VIDEO: 7.2 magnitude earthquake hits Haiti, at least 724 killed
A building collapses following an earthquake in Les Cayes, Haiti. Reuters
Gulf Today Report
A powerful earthquake struck Haiti on Saturday, killing at least 724 people and causing extensive damage in the southwest of the island, bringing back painful memories of the devastating 2010 earthquake.
The epicentre of the shaking, which rattled homes and sent terrified locals fleeing for safety starting around 8:30am (1230 GMT) Saturday, was about 100 miles (160 kilometres) by road west of the centre of the densely populated capital Port-au-Prince.
Churches, businesses, schools and homes crumbled in the quake that trapped hundreds of victims under rubble and left at least 1,800 people injured, the country's civil protection agency said.
The American Institute of Geophysics issued a tsunami warning, but it was cancelled later.
The civil protection said at least 160 people were killed in the country's South department alone.
"Lots of homes are destroyed, people are dead and some are at the hospital," said 21-year-old Christella Saint Hilaire, who lives near the epicentre.
"There have been deaths, I can confirm, but I haven't got the exact toll yet," said Jerry Chandler, the country's director of civil protection, explaining that Prime Minister Ariel Henry was on his way to the National Emergency Operations Centre in Port-au-Prince.
The earthquake was felt throughout the country, and material damage was recorded in several cities, according to scenes filmed by witnesses in the southwest of the island and posted on social media.
"I was inside my house when it started shaking, I was near the window and I saw everything falling," said Cristella.
She added, "A piece of the wall fell on my back, but I was not seriously injured," noting that "several houses were completely destroyed."
Residents in the affected area reported losses to religious buildings, schools and residences.
Witnesses photographed the rubble of several concrete buildings, including a church that appears to have been witnessing a religious celebration on Saturday morning in an area 200 km southwest of Port-au-Prince.
On January 12, 2010, an earthquake measuring 7 on the Richter scale destroyed the capital of Haiti and several cities.
More than 200,000 people died that day, more than 300,000 others were injured, and 1.5 million people were displaced.
More than ten years after that devastating earthquake, Haiti, mired in a severe socio-political crisis, has not been able to meet the challenge of reconstruction.
