It's all part of the "apocalyptic situation" Haiti finds itself in, interim President Jocelerme Privert said.
"Unfortunately, once again, nature has unleashed her fury and Haiti has lived through what I can characterize as three days of terror," he said.
In addition to destroying homes and schools and devastating Haiti's natural resources, the hurricane accelerated the rate of cholera propagation and postponed the presidential election. Privert was appointed after the presidential election, scheduled for October 2, was postponed.
"With the very little time I have left in this office, I have only two priorities," he said. "The Haitian government must demonstrate its willingness, not only to urgently address their commitment to the victims of the hurricane that demand urgent attention, but also we need to reinforce our institutions."
"Unfortunately, once again, nature has unleashed her fury and Haiti has lived through what I can characterize as three days of terror," he said.
In addition to destroying homes and schools and devastating Haiti's natural resources, the hurricane accelerated the rate of cholera propagation and postponed the presidential election. Privert was appointed after the presidential election, scheduled for October 2, was postponed.
"With the very little time I have left in this office, I have only two priorities," he said. "The Haitian government must demonstrate its willingness, not only to urgently address their commitment to the victims of the hurricane that demand urgent attention, but also we need to reinforce our institutions."
Wind alone caused almost all the damage here.
The
trees were the first casualties. Entire forests on the mountainous
northern coast of Haiti's Tiburon peninsula have been leveled.
A
week after the hurricane made landfall, aid workers say there are
communities still cut off from the outside world because of roads
blocked by debris.
For that
reason, doctors at Saint Antoine Hospital in Jeremie are expecting many
more patients in the days ahead, as people injured in the deadly storm
trickle in from the countryside.
Hurricane
Matthew destroyed the top floor of the Saint Antoine Hospital in
Jeremie, which was built in 1923. Lower floors were inundated with
water, destroying medical equipment.
The
hospital is struggling to operate. The hurricane decimated the top
floor of the main building, which was constructed in 1923. An inch of
water stands in the main hallway, amid scattered hospital gurneys and
ruined medical equipment.
"We need antibiotics and anesthetics," says the director, Conception Panfille.
She says no humanitarian assistance reached the hospital in the week after the storm.
"We see lots of planes," she says, as a pair of US military helicopters buzz overhead. "But we haven't gotten anything."
The
crude airstrip for Jeremie is about 20 minutes' drive from the town,
past a twisted landscape of felled trees, partially collapsed houses,
and Haitian families trying to recover their rain-soaked belongings from
the ruins of their homes.
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