2010 Haiti earthquake
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 | This article may be too long to read and navigate comfortably. Please consider splitting content into sub-articles and using this article for a summary of the key points of the subject. (February 2011) |
 Quake epicenter and major cities affected | |
| Date | 16:53:10, 12 January 2010 (−05:00) |
|---|---|
| Magnitude | 7.0 Mw |
| Depth | 13 km (8.1 miles) |
| Epicenter location | 18.457°N 72.533°W |
| Countries or regions affected | Haiti |
| Max. intensity | MM X[1] |
| Peak ground acceleration | 0.5 g[2] |
| Tsunami | Yes (localized)[3] |
| Casualties | 92,000[4] - 316,000[5] deaths |
By 24 January, at least 52 aftershocks measuring 4.5 or greater had been recorded.[8] An estimated three million people were affected by the quake;[9] the Haitian government reported that an estimated 316,000 people had died, 300,000 had been injured and 1,000,000 made homeless.[10][11] The death toll has also been suggested to be much lower at somewhere between 92,000[4] and 220,000, with around 1.5 million[12] to 1.8 million homeless.[13] The government of Haiti also estimated that 250,000 residences and 30,000 commercial buildings had collapsed or were severely damaged.[14]
The earthquake caused major damage in Port-au-Prince, Jacmel and other settlements in the region. Many notable landmark buildings were significantly damaged or destroyed, including the Presidential Palace, the National Assembly building, the Port-au-Prince Cathedral, and the main jail. Among those killed were Archbishop of Port-au-Prince Joseph Serge Miot,[15] and opposition leader Micha Gaillard.[16][17] The headquarters of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), located in the capital, collapsed, killing many, including the Mission's Chief, Hédi Annabi.[18][19]
Many countries responded to appeals for humanitarian aid, pledging funds and dispatching rescue and medical teams, engineers and support personnel. Communication systems, air, land, and sea transport facilities, hospitals, and electrical networks had been damaged by the earthquake, which hampered rescue and aid efforts; confusion over who was in charge, air traffic congestion, and problems with prioritisation of flights further complicated early relief work. Port-au-Prince's morgues were quickly overwhelmed with many tens of thousands of bodies having to be buried in mass graves.[20] As rescues tailed off, supplies, medical care and sanitation became priorities. Delays in aid distribution led to angry appeals from aid workers and survivors, and looting and sporadic violence were observed.
On 22 January the United Nations noted that the emergency phase of the relief operation was drawing to a close, and on the following day the Haitian government officially called off the search for survivors.
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Background
The island of Hispaniola, shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic, is seismically active and has a history of destructive earthquakes. During Haiti's time as a French colony, earthquakes were recorded by French historian Moreau de Saint-Méry (1750–1819). He described damage done by an earthquake in 1751, writing that "only one masonry building had not collapsed" in Port-au-Prince; he also wrote that the "whole city collapsed" in the 1770 Port-au-Prince earthquake. Cap-Haïtien, other towns in the north of Haiti and the Dominican Republic, and the Sans-Souci Palace were destroyed during an earthquake on 7 May 1842.[21] A magnitude 8.0 earthquake struck the Dominican Republic and shook Haiti on 4 August 1946, producing a tsunami that killed 1,790 people and injured many others.[22]Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere,[23] and is ranked 149th of 182 countries on the Human Development Index.[24] The Australian government's travel advisory site had previously expressed concerns that Haitian emergency services would be unable to cope in the event of a major disaster,[25] and the country is considered "economically vulnerable" by the Food and Agriculture Organization.[26] It is no stranger to natural disasters; in addition to earthquakes, it has been struck frequently by tropical cyclones, which have caused flooding and widespread damage. The most recent cyclones to hit the island before the earthquake were Tropical Storm Fay and Hurricanes Gustav, Hanna and Ike, all in the summer of 2008, causing nearly 800 deaths.[27]