Haiti earthquake death toll nears 2,000, rescue efforts hindered by storm

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – The death toll from the 7.2-magnitude earthquake that shattered Haiti on Saturday reached 1,941 souls by Tuesday, as heavy rain from Tropical Storm Grace hindered rescue efforts, UPI reports. Haiti’s Office of Civil Protection also confirmed Tuesday that 9,900 people have been injured in the quake.

According to a statement from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), some 1.2 million people, including 540,000 children have been affected by the earthquake, UPI reports. Moreover, UNICEF said in its statement, Tropical Storm Grace “is further disrupting access to water, shelter and other basic services.”

“Last night, I saw strong winds and heavy rainfall strike the same areas already affected by the earthquake,” Bruno Maes UNICEF’s representative in Haiti, added in a statement. “Countless Haitian families who have lost everything due to the earthquake are now living literally with their feet in the water due to the flooding.”

Saturday’s quake damaged or destroyed over 84,000 homes in addition to hospitals, schools and bridges, UPI reports. This latest devastation has occurred just weeks after Haiti’s president Jovenel Moise was assassinated, last month, and 11 years after the 2010 earthquake that killed more than 100,000 people.

Ongoing rescue and relief operations have been further hindered by gangs controlling the main road from the capital in Port-au-Prince to the southern part of Haiti, UNICEF said. However, the aid agency was able to deliver medical supplies to treat 30,000 people over the next three months, UPI reports.

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