This Day in History: 12 January 2020
12 January 2010
10 years ago, today, Haiti, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, experienced a massive earthquake, that devasted the country, however, they gained an abundance of support from the globe, yet still have not been able to fully recover since. In the past, Haiti has had a history of other destructive earthquakes, such as in 1751, 1770, 1842 and 1946. The country had the knowledge from seismologists that an earthquake was foreseen, but the poverty throughout the nation meant that buildings and emergency services were not prepared to handle the effects of a natural disaster. The earthquake struck before 4pm and was felt as far away as Cuba and Venezuela, with the epicentre of the quake being 16 miles from the capital, Port-au-Prince. Eight aftershocks were felt the same day, not comparing to the 52 that would follow over the next two weeks.
This was a catastrophe for Haiti: all of the capital's hospitals sustained serious damage, as well as it's airport and seaport, being concluded as inoperable. Telecoms and major roads were also greatly affected, and almost 300,000 buildings were damaged beyond repair. Estimates of deaths caused by the earthquake are still incalculable, but some estimates are around 40 to 50,000, however, the Haitian government expresses this number as over 316,000. Responses from other countries included the Dominican Red Cross, who provided emergency supplies and airlifts to Dominican hospitals, and nations from every continent gave money, supplies and manpower. Haiti experienced an overwhelming humanitarian response, but the crippled infrastructure made the delivery of aid very difficult, and the situation was classified as an emergency six months after the earthquake. A million people began to live in tents, and an outbreak of cholera in the following October made matters a lot worse.
Want to read more about the horrific event that hindered the already deprived Haiti? Click here for more details.
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