An earthquake measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale, recorded today in Haiti at 8:29 am local time (1:29 pm in Lisbon), occurred more than 160 km southwest of the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince.
According to the same source, 17 deaths were recorded in the department of Grand Anse, nine in the city of Cayes and three in the department of Nippes, where the epicenter of the earthquake was located, in the southwestern part of the Caribbean island.
The quake was also felt in the Dominican Republic, which divides the Caribbean island of Hispaniola with Haiti.
Quoted by international agencies, Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry has already described the situation on the ground as “dramatic”, referring to the loss of life and property damage caused by the earthquake in the country, the poorest on the American continent.
The Geological Agency associates the earthquake with a red warning of the magnitude of human damage, which means that “there will likely be a large number of casualties and the disaster is likely to affect a large area,” says its website.
“In the past, other events with this level of danger required a national and international response,” he warned.
The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issued a tsunami warning it later triggered, determining that the threat of this tidal wave had been removed.
US offers aid to Haiti
US President Joe Biden offered US aid to Haiti after the 7.2 magnitude earthquake that struck the country today, the White House said.
Biden “authorized an immediate US response and instructed USAID Director Samantha Powers to coordinate these efforts,” a White House spokesman, who asked not to be named, told reporters.
The White House did not specify what the aid would consist of, nor did it specify whether it would immediately send any aid to the Caribbean country that shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic and which is the poorest on the American continent.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez also expressed his solidarity “and the solidarity of the entire Spanish people” with Haiti due to the serious earthquake that happened today, in a post posted on his official Twitter account, in which he added: “Contacts supported by Spain move forward after this terrible event. “
Today’s 7-degree earthquake, slightly higher than in January 2010, has killed 300,000 people, injured about 300,000 and affected 1.5 million people in Haiti.
* The article was updated at 19:47.
