ADVERTISEMENT
Haiti floods kill at least four, one missingThree of the deaths and the missing person were reported in the northwest of the impoverished Caribbean country
AFP
Last Updated IST
People walk on a flooded street following two days of heavy rains that have swollen rivers and damaged homes, in Cap-Haitien, Haiti. Credit: Reuters photo
People walk on a flooded street following two days of heavy rains that have swollen rivers and damaged homes, in Cap-Haitien, Haiti. Credit: Reuters photo

Flooding triggered by torrential rain in Haiti left four people dead and one missing, authorities said Tuesday.

Violent weather affected at least 20 districts across Haiti in recent days, flooding more than 2,500 homes and completely destroying three.

Three of the deaths and the missing person were reported in the northwest of the impoverished Caribbean country. The fourth fatality was in the northeast, civil defense officials said.

ADVERTISEMENT

At least 20 municipalities in the country were affected by the bad weather. Haitian authorities estimated that more than 2,500 houses had flooded, with three completely destroyed.

Cap-Haitien, Haiti's second largest city with 300,000 inhabitants, was hit particularly hard, with a number of neighborhoods flooded.

A bridge serving a small town in the northeast was damaged and an industrial park was flooded in the same area, bordering the Dominican Republic.

However, a full picture of the damage is not yet available as travel in the city is still difficult, the country's Civil Protection agency said.

Major damage during heavy rains in Haiti is not uncommon due to poor drainage infrastructure.

A lack of an efficient garbage collection system also poses a health hazard during downpours, particularly for Haiti's poorest families living in informal dwellings near canals or ravines blocked with waste.

Watch latest videos by DH here:

ADVERTISEMENT
(Published 02 February 2022, 06:29 IST)