More than 700 people are believed to have been killed after a 7.2 magnitude earthquake was reported in Western Haiti on Saturday morning, at approximately 8:29 AM local time.
The epicentre of the quake was 5 miles from the town of Petit Trou de Nippes, around 150km west of the capital Port-au-Prince, which has a population of 2,843,925.
According to reports, the body of former senator, Gabriel Fortuné, was pulled from a collapsed hotel in the coastal city of Les Cayes.
The US Geological Survey (USGS) has issued a ‘red alert’ – meaning high casualties are probable and the impact of the disaster likely widespread. The region is still recovering from a magnitude seven earthquake in 2010, which killed up to 300,000 civilians and left many homeless.
The prime minister, Ariel Henry, who has been leading Haiti since the assassination of the former president, Jovenel Moïse, said several regions had been badly damaged, with multiple fatalities recorded. Henry tweeted:
“I extend my sympathies to the relatives of the victims of this violent earthquake.” In the last few hours, Henry declared a state of emergency for a month, calling on “the spirit of solidarity and commitment of all Haitians” to face “this dramatic situation in the country.”
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