Caritas Haiti and its international partners responded immediately last Saturday after a 7.2 intensity earthquake shook the impoverished Caribbean nation, killing more than 1,300 people and injuring thousands more. Worst affected was the region of Les Cayes in the southwest.
In Les Cayes, the residence of Cardinal Chibly Langlois, bishop of the Diocese of Les Cayes, was damaged, and the Cardinal injured. A priest staying in the bishop’s residence was killed.Buildings have collapsed in the area including an estimated 10,000 homes, churches, schools and hospitals. The southern peninsula is a remote area and looming tropical storm Grace was likely to add further to humanitarian needs. CAFOD has already pledged £50,000 to local Church partners on the frontline.
Haiti is still clawing its way back from another major earthquake 11 years ago that claimed 200,000 lives, and reeling from the assassination of its president Jovenel Moise last month. The Haitian government has declared a state of emergency for a month.
Photographs showed distraught residents wandering through rubble in the towns of Les Cayes and Jérémie. The spire of the nineteenth-century St Louis King of France Cathedral in Jérémie had collapsed. Reports of overwhelmed hospitals came as Haiti also struggles with the Covid pandemic. Just last month, the country of 11 million people received its first batch of US-donated coronavirus vaccines, via a United Nations programme for low-income countries.
Akim Rikonda, director of Catholic Relief Services (CRS) in Haiti, said, “it is quite possible that Haiti is going to need more help than ever before.” He reported that in Les Cayes, the earthquake destroyed the town's underground water pipes and the markets, leaving hundreds without food. "Once we have a full evaluation of the injured, dead and affected, we will provide emergency services, especially to the poorest and most vulnerable people." he said. In Les Cayes, the earthquake coincided with the festivities to celebrate the town’s patron saint, and a collapsed hotel was likely to be full of visitors. Catholic priest Fredy Elie, reported that access to the area is hindered by criminal gangs and pleaded for help “to open the road to those who want to help”.
Archdeacon Abiade Lozama, head of an Anglican church in Les Cayes, reported residents desperately pulling victims from ruined buildings. “The streets are filled with screaming,” he said. “People are searching, for loved ones, resources, medical help, water.”
Last Sunday Pope Francis urged the world to send aid as quickly as possible. “May solidarity of all lighten the consequences of the tragedy,” he told pilgrims in St Peter's Square. The US Conference of Catholic Bishops sent a message of support and US President Joe Biden promised aid. Neighbouring Dominican Republic has offered food and medical equipment, and Cuba offered to deploy more than 250 doctors.
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