Disaster spread after a 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck the Sud region of southern Haiti at 8:29 a.m., local time, on Saturday August 14, sending people into the streets as buildings toppled in the shaking. The main earthquake was followed by a 5.2-magnitude aftershock at 9:49 a.m., local time. Several other aftershocks also occurred into Sunday morning.
Shaking could be felt across the northern Caribbean, including in the neighboring Dominican Republic, eastern Cuba, Jamaica and Puerto Rico.
Saturday's earthquake also left at least 5,700 people injured in the Caribbean nation, with thousands more displaced from their destroyed or damaged homes. Survivors in some areas were forced to wait out in the open amid oppressive heat for help from overloaded hospitals.
The devastation could soon worsen with the coming of Tropical Depression Grace, which is predicted to reach Haiti on Monday night. The U.S. National Hurricane Center warned that although Grace had weakened from tropical storm strength Sunday, it still posed a threat to bring heavy rain, flooding and landslides.
