Haiti struggles to treat thousands injured in quake

PORT-AU-PRINCE－Haitian hospitals were swamped on Sunday with thousands of injured people after a devastating earthquake the day before killed over 1,200 people, and authorities were racing to bring doctors to the worst-hit areas.

At least 1,297 people were killed in the 7.2-magnitude quake that struck about 160 kilometers to the west of the densely populated capital Port-au-Prince on Saturday.

In another badly hit area in the northwestern city of Jeremie, doctors treated injured patients on hospital stretchers underneath trees and on mattresses by the side of the road, as healthcare centers run out of space.

"We do have a serious issue," said Jerry Chandler, the head of Haiti's civil protection agency. "There are very important facilities that are dysfunctional as we speak and those that are functional are receiving an overflow of patients."

Churches, hotels, hospitals and schools were badly damaged or destroyed, while the walls of a prison were rent open by the violent shudders that convulsed Haiti. The civil protection agency said some 13,694 houses were destroyed, suggesting the toll could rise further.

In seafront town Les Cayes with a population of some 90,000 people, rescuers in red hard hats and blue overalls pulled bodies from the tangled wreckage of one building, as a yellow mechanical excavator nearby helped to shift the rubble.

Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who flew to visit Les Cayes, praised the dignity shown by the people there even in the midst of their suffering.

"They are affected but resilient. They fight to survive," he said, thanking international agencies and foreign governments for their support.

Supplies on the way

Nearby countries, including the Dominican Republic and Mexico, rushed to send desperately needed food and medicine by air and across Haiti's land border. Colombia sent search and rescue personnel.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed his sadness on Sunday over the tragic loss of life and injuries caused by the large earthquake. Through a statement by his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric, the UN chief "extends his deep condolences to the families of the victims and to the government and people of Haiti".

Haiti's government appealed to aid organizations against setting up makeshift camps and urged them to work through the planning ministry.

At the Port-au-Prince airport, international aid workers, doctors and rescue workers boarded flights to Les Cayes.

Rescue and aid efforts might be complicated by Tropical Depression Grace, which was expected to lash Haiti with heavy rainfall on Monday.

Agencies - Xinhua