More than 500,000 people are in need [10] of emergency assistance in Haiti's southern peninsula, where last week's 7.2-magnitude earthquake [11] has killed more than 2,100 people and injured more than 12,200. Aid and medical efforts are hampered by debris-strewn roads, rain from Tropical Storm Grace, a shortage of working hospitals [12], and gang violence. The private Bernard Mevs Hospital in the capital, Port-au-Prince, where some of the injured have been sent, was closed Aug. 19 as part of a two-day shutdown to protest the kidnapping of two doctors [13]. In recent years, Haiti has been beset by violent gangs [14] who patrol many of the country's transport routes. Some villagers were also reportedly blocking aid shipments [13], saying they were also desperate for help. The southern peninsula has yet to recover from Hurricane Matthew [15], which killed at least 546 people [16] in 2016. Prime Minister Ariel Henry [17] has promised to speed up aid efforts—more than 30,000 families [18] have been displaced, and there are fears of cholera due to lack of safe water, sanitation, and shelter. The United States has deployed several helicopters, aircraft, and the USS Arlington [19] to help with relief efforts. France [20] also sent a ship with humanitarian cargo, a helicopter, and more than two dozen soldiers.
From The New Humanitarian [21], Aug. 20
