Haiti earthquake news today Death toll raised to 1297 as rescuers race to find thousands feared buried beneath rubble

AT least 1,297 people are confirmed dead after a huge 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit western Haiti on Saturday.

The quake struck 8 km from the town of Petit Trou de Nippes, about 150 km west of the capital Port-au-Prince, at a depth of 10 km, the US Geological Survey said.

More than 5,700 are injured and many more are still missing.

Prime Minister Ariel Henry said he was rushing aid to areas where towns were destroyed and hospitals overwhelmed with incoming patients.

USGS has estimated “thousands of fatalities” are likely and “tens of thousands of injuries in poor mountainous communities" and has issued a "red alert"

Follow our live blog below for all the latest news and updates...

PHOTOS SHOW DEVASTATING DAMAGE

Buildings were devastated following the earthquake this weekend.

THINGS COULD GET WORSE

Haiti’s Civil Protection Agency has warned things could get worse with the arrival of Tropical Depression Grace which is expected to hit the island tonight.

The agency predicted Haitians must expect strong winds, heavy rain, rough seas, landslides and flooding.

The quake on Saturday has already killed at least 1,297 people with another 5,700 injured and thousands have lost their homes.

SHORTAGE OF DOCTORS

There is a shortage of doctors adding to the problem of hospitals being overwhelmed.

Officials in Les Cayes believe there are only about 30 doctors for about 1 million people, the New York Times reports.

Many hospitals and clinics were heavily damaged and struggling to cope with the number of casualties.

TROPICAL STORM GRACE HEADS FOR HAITI

Tropical Storm Grace is expected to hit Haiti this week, complicating search and rescue efforts.

Tropical Depression #Grace Advisory 10A: Heavy Rain Expected Across Puerto Rico Tonight and the Dominican Republic and Haiti On Monday. https://t.co/VqHn0u1vgc

â€" National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) August 15, 2021

DRONE FOOTAGE OF THE DAMAGE

Drone footage posted on Twitter showed the devastating damage of the 7.2 magnitude earthquake that has left nearly 1,300 dead.

HAITI’S WRECKAGE: Drone footage shows the devastating aftermath of the magnitude 7.2 earthquake that struck southwestern Haiti on Saturday. The government reported that at least 1,297 people were killed and 2,800 injured. pic.twitter.com/om8AKoOmtn

â€" CBS News (@CBSNews) August 16, 2021

HAITIAN AUTHORITIES FEAR EXTREME DAMAGE

Haitian politicians and authorities fear the “awful” aftermath of the devastating earthquake that hit the island today.

Renald Lubérice, the general secretary of Haiti’s ministerial council, tweeted in French: “The first images that have reached me are awful.

“The earthquake has caused a great deal of damage in the south. Hopefully there isn’t major loss of life.”

‘WE NEED MORE THAN PRAYERS’

One person shared a video that showed victims being pulled from the rubble.

“We need more than prayers,” one person said.

USAID ARRIVES IN HAITI

A search and rescue team from the United States Agency of International Development arrived in Haiti on Sunday.

FLORIDA MAYOR VOLUNTEERS TO HELP HAITI

Daniella Levine Cava, Mayor of Miami-Dade County in Florida, tweeted her support to Haiti following the earthquake.

“Miami-Dade stands ready to assist in all the ways we can in the days and weeks ahead,” Levine Cava said.

Devastating news from Haiti this morning. Keeping the people of Haiti and their families and loves ones in our community in my heart and prayers. Miami-Dade stands ready to assist in all the ways we can in the days and weeks ahead. https://t.co/2e5PIxvnef

â€" Daniella Levine Cava (@MayorDaniella) August 14, 2021

‘MIAMI STANDS WITH YOU’

Mayor Francis Suarez of Miami shared her support with the people of Haiti.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Haiti and our beloved Haitian community in the City. The City of Miami stands with you during this tragic time and we are here to assist in any way,” Suarez wrote.

Haiti has gone through so much this year.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Haiti and our beloved Haitian community in the City.

The City of Miami stands with you during this tragic time and we are here to assist in any way.

â€" Mayor Francis Suarez (@FrancisSuarez) August 14, 2021

THOUSANDS OF FATALITIES EXPECTED

At least 1,297 people have died and 5,700 others are injured as buildings tumbled into rubble after the magnitude 7.2 earthquake.

Prime Minister Ariel Henry said he was rushing aid to areas where towns were destroyed and hospitals overwhelmed with incoming patients.

US Geological Survey has estimated “thousands of fatalities” are likely and “tens of thousands of injuries in poor mountainous communities” and has issued a “red alert”

“High casualties are probable and the disaster is likely widespread,” a statement from the agency released around an hour after the quake said.

“Past events with this alert level have required a national or international level response.”

TENNIS STAR OFFERS TO DONATE PRIZE MONEY TO HAITI

Tennis star Naomi Osaka, whose father’s family are from Haiti, expressed her sorrow about the quake, saying she would give all the prize money she won at a tournament next week to the relief efforts.

“I know our ancestors blood is strong,” she said on Twitter, “we’ll keep rising.”

Really hurts to see all the devastation that’s going on in Haiti, and I feel like we really can’t catch a break. I’m about to play a tournament this week and I’ll give all the prize money to relief efforts for Haiti. I know our ancestors blood is strong we’ll keep rising 🇭🇹❤️🙏🏾

â€" NaomiOsaka大坂なおみ (@naomiosaka) August 14, 2021

GANGS HINDERING RELIEF EFFORTS

Humanitarian workers said gang activity in the seaside district of Martissant, just west of the Haitian capital, was complicating relief efforts.

“Nobody can travel through the area,” Ndiaga Seck, a UNICEF spokesman in Port-au-Prince, told the AP. “We can only fly over or take another route.”

Seck said information about deaths and damage was slow coming to Port-au-Prince because of spotty internet service, but UNICEF planned to send medical supplies to two hospitals in the south, in Les Cayes and Jeremie.

REP. CORI BUSH: ‘OUR WORK IS TO SAVE LIVES’

Missouri Rep. Cori Bush said the United States must welcome refugees, including any that may come from Haiti.

Our work is to save lives.

Whether it’s Afghanistan, Haiti, Lebanon, or communities facing extreme hardship worldwideâ€"one thing we could do to save lives RIGHT NOW is become a country that welcomes more refugees with open arms.

Refugees must be welcome here.

â€" Cori Bush (@CoriBush) August 15, 2021

ACTORS SHARE LOVE FOR HAITI

Actor Jared Padalecki called the crisis in Haiti “absolutely heartbreaking.”

Misha Collins shared similar sentiments, encouraging people to donate to relief efforts.

“Heartbroken to see all the suffering in Haiti after today’s devastating earthquake,” Collins tweeted.

Our love and prayers are with the people of Haiti as the reports continue to reach us about the magnitude of the situation. Absolutely heartbreaking ❤️🙏🏻 https://t.co/59depiMfs5

â€" Jared Padalecki (@jarpad) August 15, 2021

MEDICAL NEED IS ‘BIGGEST URGENCY’ AS HOSPITALS OVERWHELMED

Haitian Prime Minister and acting President Ariel Henry has said that “medical needs” is his country’s “biggest urgency”.

“When it comes to medical needs, this is our biggest urgency. We have started to send medications and medical personnel to the facilities that are affected,” he said. “For the people who need urgent special care, we have evacuated a certain number of them, and we will evacuate some more today and tomorrow.”

The devastating earthquake has left hospitals unable to cope as they try to deal with the number of casualites.

An administrator at Hopital Saint Antoine told CNN: “There are a lot of people coming in… We don’t have enough supplies:”

SOUTHWESTERN HAITI WORST AFFECTED

Southwestern parts of Haiti appear to have borne the brunt of the earthquake, especially around the city of Les Cayes.

The latest shocking figures say at least 724 people died with an unknown number of people missing and at least 2,800 people have been injured, officials say.

Rescuers are picking through rubble in a desperate search for any survivors.

POPE URGES COUNTRIES TO SEND URGENT AID

Pope Francis has urged countries to send quick aid to the devastated country of Haiti.

“May solidarity from everyone lighten the consequences of the tragedy,” he told pilgrims and tourists at his Sunday blessing in St. Peter’s Square.

The United States sent vital supplies and deployed a 65-person urban search-and-rescue team with specialized equipment, said Samantha Power, the administrator of the United States Agency for International Development.

STORM TO BLIGHT QUAKE-HIT HAITI

The rescue efforts are set to be made more complicated by the arrival of Tropical Storm Grace, which is set to lash Haiti with heavy rainfall on Monday.

There was also the possibility of flash flooding, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.

ROADS SPLIT IN HAITI

One video showed a Haitian road split with cracks after the earthquake.

LOOK: A road was left split open in Haiti after Saturday's powerful earthquake.

Haiti's Civil Defense on Sunday said at least 724 have been killed pic.twitter.com/WOXu7et8kH

â€" Bloomberg Quicktake (@Quicktake) August 15, 2021

VICTIMS PULLED FROM THE RUBBLE

Video shows victims being pulled from the rubble after the earthquake.

“We need more than prayers,” one person said.

DEATH TOLL RISES TO 1,200

The Haitian government has confirmed over 1,200 people are dead following the 7.2 magnitude earthquake on Saturday.

At least 1,297 are dead and over 5,700 are injured, according to CNN.

TROPICAL STORM GRACE COULD HIT HAITI

To make matters worse, the region may be impacted by Tropical Storm Grace early next week.

Formerly a tropical depression, Grace strengthened to tropical storm status about 400 miles east of the Leeward Islands in the Atlantic Ocean, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The storm is expected to bring heavy rain and flooding and could hit Haiti as soon as Monday, forecasts show.

“We’re concerned that this earthquake is just one more crisis on top of what the country is already facing â€" including the worsening political stalemate after the president’s assassination, COVID and food insecurity,” said Jean-Wickens Merone, spokesman for World Vision Haiti.

PHOTOS SHOW DEVASTATING DAMAGE

Buildings were devastated following the earthquake this weekend.

SECOND EARTHQUAKE STRUCK HAITI

Another earthquake with a 5.8 magnitude shook Haiti on Saturday night â€" less than 24 hours after the country was hit by a massive 7.2 quake that has so far claimed over 700 lives.

The 5.8 magnitude quake was measured at a depth 40 kilometers, and the tremor was felt some 38 km northwest of Les Cayes, according to the European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC).

According to initial reports, no casualties or damage immediately followed Saturday night’s quake.

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