Haiti Earthquake Update: Death Toll Jumps to 1,297, Rescuers Continue to Search for Survivors

An earthquake with a 7.2-magnitude hit Haiti on Saturday, and officials confirmed at least 1,297 casualties after the powerful quake.

Homes, churches, and schools were among the infrastructures that were toppled during the quake. According to BBC, rescuers are continuing their search operation as they pick through debris for any survivors.

Haiti officials said the number of people missing is still unknown, while around 5,700 have been injured.

Archdeacon Abiade Lozama, head of an Anglican church in Les Cayes, told the New York Times that streets are filled with people screaming and those searching for their loved ones, medical help, and water.

Haiti Earthquake Damage

Les Cayes suffered the worst of the earthquake damage. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said the tremor's epicenter was about 12 kilometers or 7.5 miles from the town of Saint-Louis du Sud.

However, the earthquake was also felt in the capital of Port-au-Prince and neighboring countries - as far as Cuba and Jamaica.

Aftershocks were felt throughout the day and late into the night, with many people being frightened or homeless stayed in the streets to sleep, Los Angeles Times reported.

Haiti Prime Minister Ariel Henry is set to visit the areas widely affected by the earthquake, including towns and hospitals.

The prime minister has declared a one-month state of emergency in Haiti, saying that he will not be seeking help from international friends until they have calculated the damages.

Henry noted that they are prioritizing to recover many survivors stuck under the rubble. He also said that local hospitals, particularly in Les Cayes, were already overwhelmed with victims and survivors of the earthquake.

Director of Haiti's Office of Civil Protection, Jerry Chandler, noted that a partial count of structural damage recorded at least 860 destroyed homes, with over 700 damaged.

The earthquake that struck Haiti occurred on the same fault line as the one that destroyed the capital, Port-au-Prince, in 2010.

Nations Are Stepping up to Help After Haiti Earthquake

Susan E. Hough, a seismologist in the USGS, said there was no doubt that the current quake and the one that happened in 2010 were linked. Hough, with a USGS team, had earlier studied the 2010 earthquake, The New York Times reported.

She said there is no way that they could predict which domino is going to fall next. Reports noted that the fault zone of the 2010 quake was also most likely the source of four major earthquakes in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Meanwhile, political leaders, volunteers, and residents internationally have offered help. Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness offered prayers o those affected, while U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris said the United States is working to assess and provide relief to Haiti, USA Today reported.

Through USAID, U.S. President Joe Biden said they support efforts to assess the damage and assist efforts to recover those injured and who must now rebuild.

Biden said he named USAID Administrator Samantha Power as the senior U.S. official to oversee the U.S effort to help Haiti.

"The United States remains a close and enduring friend to the people of Haiti, and we will be there in the aftermath of this tragedy," the president noted.

Dominican Republic President Luis Abinader said their government had already offered assistance.

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Written by: Mary Webber

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