PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti, Oct 6, CMC – The death toll in Haiti climbed to nearly 300 on Thursday as search and rescue teams feared that the figure could rise even more as they gain access to communities cut off by the passage of Hurricane Matthew earlier this week.

The Haitian government confirmed that so far 283 people died when the Category 4 hurricane made landfall on Wednesday and destroyed the flimsy houses built in many cases of mud.
The government said that at least 50 people died in the southern town of Roche-a-Bateau and in the city of Jeremie at least 80 per cent of the buildings were destroyed. In Sud province 30,000 homes were destroyed.

Most of the fatalities in Haiti were in towns and fishing villages around the southern coast, with many killed by falling trees, flying debris and swollen rivers. Non-governmental organisations said phone coverage and electricity were down and people were running out of food and water.

Emmanuel Pierre, an Interior Ministry coordinator in Les Cayes, said most of the people died in the southwest of the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country that bore the brunt of Matthew’s fury.

Authorities expect the number of deaths to rise, with mayors and other local officials in marooned areas reporting higher numbers.

Hurricane Matthew – the most powerful Caribbean storm in nearly a decade pounded the Bahamas on Thursday as it made its way towards the United States.

Reports out of Nassau said that trees and power lines were uprooted but so far no fatalities have been reported.