Haiti Rocked by Deaths, Devastation in Wake of Hurricane Matthew
The death toll in Haiti continues to soar as rescue workers reach remote villages cut off by Hurricane Matthew. It pummeled the island nation just a few short days ago.
The number of dead has more than doubled, from 400 to 877, as rescue teams gained access to the southern parts of the country previously cut off by the storm according to a BBC report.
Rescue workers fear the worst as gaining access to remote areas means finding more dead bodies; and, the looming threat of cholera could dramatically increase the death toll.
Operation Blessing International is delivering hundreds of gallons of chlorine to ensure people have safe drinking water. They are also providing relief with food, clothing, blankets to hurricane victims.
Operation Blessing International president Bill Horan spoke with CBN News about efforts to provide aid to Haiti.
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The New York Times reports that 20,000 homes have been destroyed and 90 percent of southern Haiti has been wiped out.
The World Food Program's Carlos Veloso told BBC that some of the hard-hit towns can only be reached by air or sea.
"We knew we would continue find people under the rubble," Jean Senozier Despreux, who lives and works in Les Cayes, said. "It was so intense there was no way out."
One man told Reuters that a tree flattened his house and he was trapped.
"The entire house fell on us. I couldn't get out," Jean-Pierre Jean-Donald said. "People came to lift the rubble, and then we saw my wife, who had died."
Government officials estimate that close to 350,000 people need help, but downed power lines and blocked roads make it nearly impossible for non-governmental agencies to send any aid.
The Red Cross has launched a $6.9 million initiative to provide food, water, and medical care to 50,000 people.
The organization's biggest concern is a surge in cholera cases, as the sanitation system in Haiti already overwhelmed.
"This vulnerable nation has been hit again by a huge disaster that requires substantial international support," says Ines Brill, who serves as the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) delegation head in the Latin Caribbean.
"After a major disaster like this, we know the need for clean water, emergency shelter, health care and adequate sanitation will be significant," says Walter Cotte, IFRC's regional Director for the Americas. "This appeal will ensure that the Red Cross can help meet those needs."
