2010 Haiti Earthquake

2010 Haiti Earthquake 

    January 12th, 2010 an intense earthquake struck Haiti, leaving many people homeless and injured. The epicenter of the earthquake was near Port-au-Prince seaport and the damage went on for miles. The earthquake itself, the shaking, only lasted around 35 seconds but did extensive damage to residential housing and businesses. The magnitude of the earthquake was a 7.0 on the Richter scale, meaning it was a highly powerful earthquake. There were aftershocks after the main earthquake; the aftershocks magnitudes were at a 5.9 and a 5.5 on the Richter scale (Pallardy 2010). Shocks could be felt in the surrounding areas such as the Dominican Republic, Cuba, and even Jamaica. An earthquake of this magnitude had not struck the Haiti area since the 18th century. The earthquake was caused by the North American Plate and the Caribbean plate. There was a small thrust along the Leogane fault line which was caused by rocks moving across the fracture. The earthquake did not occur very deep below the earth’s surface which increased the shaking at the surface (Pallardy 2010). The earthquake took a huge toll on the human features of the country. Buildings that defined the landscape had fallen or collapsed (Pallardy 2010). Many people had been trapped under rubble from fallen buildings, some were rescued. 

Image 1: The epicenter of the 2010 Haiti earthquake. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Haiti is one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere and the population was already suffering from economic, political, and poverty issues. An earthquake at this degree was not something the country could handle gracefully because they were already in a tough situation. Around 250,000 people were killed in the earthquake (Reid 2019). Another 300,000  people were injured and 5 million people were displaced from their homes (Reid 2019). To this year the country has still not fully recovered from this disaster (Kahn et al. 2020). Many buildings came tumbling down because the government had little to no building codes; many buildings were weak and poorly built and maintained. International aid was required in order to help the citizens of Haiti survive the devastating event and the poverty that followed (Pallardy 2010). Millions of dollars were poured into the economy, promises of new roads, and better infrastructure were given but the help and money tapered off and the citizens still continued to suffer from the aftermath (Kahn et al. 2020). It would have been beneficial to the country if there had been stricter building regulations; the country does sit on top of a fault line which means there is always the possibility of another violent earthquake. If another earthquake were to strike today, they would not be prepared for it.  

Image 2: Damage done by the mainshock, power lines, and buildings are down. Humaintyhouse.org 

Image 3: Houses destroyed by earthquakes. TheTelegraph.co.uk 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rsi-8FJz0QA&ab_channel=GlobalNews 

Video: Description of the 2010 Haiti earthquake. The description of the loss of life and the destruction of the lives of some of the poorest people in the world. In the weeks following the earthquake, international aid. 

Sources

“Disasters & Conflicts: Haiti. Earthquake, 2010.” Humanity House, 7 Feb. 2017, humanityhouse.org/en/rampen-conflicten-haiti-aardbeving-2010/.

Kahn, Carrie, and Jeffrey Pierre. “A 'Lost Decade': Haiti Still Struggles To Recover 10 Years After Massive Earthquake.” NPR, NPR, 12 Jan. 2020, www.npr.org/2020/01/12/794298546/a-lost-decade-haiti-still-struggles-to-recover-10-years-after-massive-earthquake.

“Massive Earthquake Strikes Haiti.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 18 July 2011, www.history.com/this-day-in-history/massive-earthquake-strikes-haiti.

Pallardy, Richard. “2010 Haiti Earthquake.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 2010, www.britannica.com/event/2010-Haiti-earthquake.

Reid, Kathryn. “2010 Haiti Earthquake: Facts, FAQs, and How to Help.” World Vision, 27 Feb. 2020, www.worldvision.org/disaster-relief-news-stories/2010-haiti-earthquake-facts.