The open wounds in the poorest country in America
A devastating earthquake upended the lives of thousands in Haiti. Early in the morning of 14 August 2021, a 7.2 magnitude earthquake rocked Haiti, claiming more than 2,200 lives and injuring thousands more. Many families lost everything as hospitals, schools and homes collapsed, leaving communities in crisis.
Severe conditions in southwestern Haiti – where more than half a million children lack access to shelter, drinking water, and hygiene facilities – were rapidly increasing the threat of acute respiratory infections, diarrhoeal diseases, cholera and malaria. The lives of thousands of earthquake-affected children and families are now at risk, simply because they don’t have access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene.
Weeks after the earthquake, hospitals such as the Immaculate Conception in Les Cayes continue to receive victims of the earthquake, accompanied by their family and friends. Children and their families in need of urgent care continue to arrive from rural areas where health centres have been destroyed. This is placing a considerable strain on receiving facilities and risks disrupting routine vaccination programs, nutritional screenings, and other essential services.
Months after the earthquake, thousands of children in Haiti remain at risk. Even before the earthquake, children were suffering from high rates of malnutrition, displacement caused by gang-related violence, and the secondary impacts of COVID-19. But right now, the humanitarian needs of Haitian children are more acute than ever as entire families have lost everything, including houses, schools, access to water and health facilities.
