PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti, Oct 7, CMC – At least 10 people were killed and several others injured after an earthquake with a magnitude of 5.9 rocked northwest Haiti on Saturday night, officials have confirmed.
The Directorate of Civil Protection (DPC) said that the quake was felt across several parts of the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country and that it created panic in several cities.
The DPC said that most of the deaths occurred in Port-de-Paix , north west of here, where seven bodies had been found and three others in the Gros Morne.
It said at least 135 people have been injured and taken to hospitals. “Many houses are destroyed or damaged,” it said.
The DPC said that rescue teams are working across the country especially in the north west where two slight aftershocks have been felt since.
“The Directorate of Civil Protection invites people to keep calm and not to rely on rumours. The earthquake did not require the launch of a tsunami warning,” the DPC said in a statement.
The DPC said that the 10 people killed after they were caught in collapsed buildings and that the earthquake shook the island late Saturday night.
“I urge the population to keep calm, following the passage of the earthquake whose epicenter is located in the northwest coast,” President Jovenel Moïse posted on Twitter.
‘The (disaster) risk management system and the regional branches of the Civil Protection are on standby to assist the inhabitants of the affected areas,” he added.
The earthquake occurred about 12 miles north of Port-de-Paix in northwest Haiti.
In 2010, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 killed an estimated 160,000 people and left more than a million others homeless in the French-speaking country.
On Sunday, rescue teams in Haiti were working to provide relief in the aftermath of the 5.9 magnitude earthquake that rocked sections of the country late Saturday.
According Secretary of State for Communications Eddy Jackson Alexis, a preliminary report indicated that 11 people had died and 135 injured.
It’s reported that seven people died in the coastal city of Port-de-Paix and three people died in the community of Gros-Morne in the province of Artibonite.
The injured are being treated at medical centers in the northern part of the country.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake hit at 8:11 p.m. Saturday (local time) and was centered 12 miles northwest of Port-de-Paix, which is about 136 miles from here.
The quake was 7.3 miles below the surface.
The tremor was also felt in the neighboring Dominican Republic and in eastern Cuba.
The civil protection agency issued a statement saying that some houses were destroyed in Port-de-Paix, Gros Morne, Chansolme and Turtle Island.
Haiti President Jovenel Moise said civil protection brigades were working to clear debris and help victims. He also said the government had sent water and food.
Impoverished Haiti, where many live in tenuous circumstances, is especially vulnerable to earthquakes. A vastly larger magnitude 7.1 quake damaged much of the capital in 2010 and killed an estimated 300,000 people.
In 2010, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 killed an estimated 160,000 people and left more than a million others homeless in the French-speaking country.
Haiti rattled by several aftershocks
Haiti, Oct 8, CMC – An earthquake measuring 4.2 on the Richter scale rattled Haiti during the early hours of Monday, less than 48 hours after one killed 12 people and left more than 150 others injured.
The quake occurred at 1.04 am (local time) and was located 17 kilometers (km) north of Turtle Island, 32 km north-west of Port-de-Paix. It had a depth of 10 km.
There are no immediate reports of injuries or damages.
On Sunday, Turtle Island was also rocked by an earthquake with a magnitude of .5.2. The U.S. Geological Survey said the epicenter of the aftershock was located 9.8 miles north-northwest of Port-de-Paix.
Officials say the quakes are aftershocks from Saturday’s deadly 5.9 tremor that as felt across several parts of the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country and that it created panic in several cities.
The Directorate of Civil Protection (DPC) said that at least 12 people were confirmed dead and 188 injured and that most of the deaths occurred in Port-de-Paix , north west of here. It said that rescue teams are working across the country especially in the north west.
Meanwhile, the United Nations says it is prepared to assist the French-speaking Caribbean country following the earthquakes.
In a statement, the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said he ‘is saddened to learn of the tragic loss of life and injuries caused by the earthquake in north-west Haiti on 6 October”.
The UN chief extended his condolences to the families of the victims and to the government of Haiti.
“The United Nations stands ready to support the Government of Haiti in the response efforts,” the statement noted.
Saturday night’s quake is the strongest earthquake to hit Haiti since 2010, when the country was devastated by a 7.3 magnitude temblor, which killed more than 100,000 people.
Minor earthquake rocks Jamaica
KINGSTON, Jamaica, Oct. 8, CMC – An earthquake with a magnitude of 3.6 was felt in sections of the island late Sunday.
The United States Geological Survey says that the earthquake, with its epicenter west northwest of Hope Bay in the eastern parish of Portland was felt in the neighboring parishes of Kingston, St. Andrew and St Thomas.
There have been no reports of injuries or damages.
This is the third tremor to rock sections of the island in recent weeks.
Last month, two minor earthquakes were recorded.
This earthquake follows a 5.9 magnitude tremor in Haiti on Saturday that left 11 dead and more than 30 injured .
