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Hanna brings more suffering to Haiti |
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Sunday, 07 September 2008 |
After a severe and pounding and significant loss of life from floods
brought about by Tropical Storm Gustav, Haiti has been severely
affected by another, Tropical Storm Hanna.
As Hanna stalled over northern Haiti on Tuesday, residents of the
coastal city of Gonaives feared for their lives as flood waters invaded
their homes. Reports are that several people who took refuge on roof
tops as the flood waters rose, screamed in desperation to be rescued by
U.N. peacekeepers and rescue convoys.
After a severe and pounding and significant loss of life from floods brought about by Tropical Storm Gustav, Haiti has been severely affected by another, Tropical Storm Hanna.
As Hanna stalled over northern Haiti on Tuesday, residents of the coastal city of Gonaives feared for their lives as flood waters invaded their homes. Reports are that several people who took refuge on roof tops as the flood waters rose, screamed in desperation to be rescued by U.N. peacekeepers and rescue convoys.
However, the Associated Press reported that the peacekeepers and rescue convoys were not able to make it into Gonaives as the city was surrounded by a virtual lake of floodwaters. A convoy led by Prime Minister Michele Pierre-Louis had to abandon efforts at getting into Gonaives when one of the cars in the convoy was nearly swept away.
Over the past three weeks Haiti has been drenched by not two, but three tropical storms, Fay, Gustav and Hanna. Floods and mudslides from the storms have killed some 100 people. The reported deaths in Haiti resulting from Hanna up to press time, is estimated at 18.
A U.N. official in Gonaives, has been reported as saying that the situation is bad as it could ever be, and because of the rising water people could not be rescued, and had to remain wherever they were. Last week Gustav had destroyed several roads in the country.
Haiti has been seriously affected by storms and hurricanes almost every year over the past decade. These storms have created tremendous hardships to the country, with people losing homes, businesses, farms and lives. The country is very susceptible to flooding and landslides especially since its steep, mountainous terrain has been stripped of trees that are used by many people for charcoal fuel, unable to afford other sources of fuel.
Hanna, which early on Tuesday was a Category 1 hurricane, lost some of its force as it stalled on the Haitian coast with top winds of 65 mph, creating torrential rains. On Wednesday the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said the system could regain hurricane strength and turn toward the east coast of Florida, Georgia or South Carolina towards the end of this week.
Hanna also created severe flooding in Puerto Rico which impacted visitors who were touring that country. A Colombian university student drowned in a raging river, while a Brazilian friend of his is missing.
With the hurricane season peaking on September 10, Haiti, other Caribbean islands, and the U.S. East and Gulf Coast regions can still expect the impact of other storms. This is evident by the fact that other than Hanna, two other tropical systems; Ike and Josephine are traveling towards the region. Hispaniola, the island shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic lies in the projected meteorological path, or cone, of these storms, as does Cuba, Puerto Rico, Jamaica and South Florida.
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