Post-Sandy Flooding In Haiti

By Caitlin O’Beirne

Heavy rains in Haiti on Thursday night caused flooding that collapsed homes and killed at least 16 says the Agenge France Presse.

The flooding mostly occurred in Cap-Haitien, Haiti’s second largest city. Cap-Haitien is a port city located in the northern part of Haiti.

Among the dead, at least three were identified as children, officials said.

City police chief Kenel Pierre told AFP “Haitian police patrols found a number of bodies in the streets. We have seen the bodies of three children aged two or three.”

Officials also reported that at least three are missing. Many had to be rescued and provided with shelters.

The Cap-Haitian Mayor Wilborde Beon said to AFP, “The city has been struck by disaster. There are many dead and major damage. All the populous areas are flooded. The entrance to the city is completely flooded, all the rivers and ravines are swollen.”

This damage comes two weeks after Hurricane Sandy hit Haiti. Sandy killed 54 and destroyed 70% of Haiti’s crops, officials say. Sandy also caused a substantial amount of flooding.

The country is still recovering from the storm. 20 people are still missing and 20,000 people were evacuated. The UN’s World Food Programme asked for 20 million dollars in funding after reporting that up to two million Haitians will not be guaranteed food.

The heavy deforesting in Haiti makes the country susceptible to flooding and mudslides.

“We ask the private sector to help us because it continues to rain. All other sectors of the state have been mobilized,” Beon said.

The World Bank President Jim Yong Kim recently did a two-day tour of Haiti in order to asses how to provide support to Haiti after Sandy’s damage.

Kim told the Associated Press, “Despite the earthquake, despite the hurricanes, despite the enormous obstacles that Haiti always seems to face, I think there’s more hope today I have seen in a very long time.”

Photo Courtesy: AP Images