IMPACT OF THE HAITI EARTHQUAKE
"The city was left in total devastation, there was nothing, nothing at all, no aid, nothing. It is abomination, all the world can see what is happening, but we still have no help. We are left to help each other." - René Préval (Haiti's president)
The Haiti earthquake had an extremely devastating impact on all aspects of Haitian life. There were significant social, economical and environmental impacts that the Haitians faced after the earthquake, but above all there were extreme damages to the Haitian culture.
Cultural impacts:
The earthquake completely destroyed the Haitian culture. The Haitian cultural symbol is of strength and beauty, the earthquake destroyed some of Haiti's most cultural buildings and practises. Some of Haiti's most national treasures filled with heritage were destroyed in the earthquake, this included buildings such as the national palace, the presidential building, the holy trinity church and the centre d'art (Haiti's main museum). The people of Haiti were also left without hope.
Social Impacts:
The Haiti earthquake killed more than 200,000 people and left more than 300 000 people injured. In less than a minute, over a quarter of a million (70%) homes and buildings collapsed, this included 4, 000 schools, 8 hospitals, 75 government buildings and even the presidential palace. Transport and communication links were largely disrupted and survivors had no way of contacting family members and friends. More than 600 000 people left Port-au-prince due to the spread disease. Haitians, especially children, also faced psychological issues, a large number of children were orphaned and left without parents, were they were homed in crowded tents with little or no security and privacy. Cultural features were also destroyed, churches and community halls collapsed and buried their innocent victims. The disaster even crippled all emergency services, leaving no effective police, ambulance or fire-fighters.
Economic impacts:
As expected, this natural disaster had a devastating impact on Haiti's economy, as well as its surrounding nations. Haiti is a 3rd world country and so the economic impacts were devastating. Reliable industries and structures were destroyed, leaving the nation in a tough situation. The economy was left in shambles. The total damage of this tragedy reached an estimated total $7.8 billion. Also, majority of Haiti's agricultural industries were destroyed in the earthquake, causing unemployment levels to sky rocket. Additionally, most of Haiti's primary exports such as mangoes and coffee saw a large drop off. Damaged transport and communication links also made international trade hard. Food prices grew extremely expensive, leading to starvation among the public. Despair also led to crime, people looted shops and attacked aid convoys, this led to major income loss in shops, business and aid services.
Environmental Impacts:
The earthquake had major environmental impacts. The built landscapes of Haiti were destroyed. Broken electricity cables started fires which damaged woodland areas in Haiti. There were many landslides that occurred that destroyed natural landscapes and blocked off rural areas. Important natural and human landmarks, such as the presidential palace were also destroyed. The earthquake also triggered flooding in coastal areas due to tidal waves.
one year later- Haiti was still on the long road to recovery. About a million people were still living in tents and only 25% of the rubble blocking streets had been cleared.