At least 2 dead, 13 injured, and hundreds of homes flooded across Haiti after days of heavy rains expose lingering drainage failures

Editor’s Note: Fritznel D. Octave and Pierre Stevenson Joseph, The Haitian Times’ collaborator in Cap-Haïtien, contributed additional reporting to this story. 

Over the past five days, Haiti has been hit by severe flooding caused by heavy rainfall, leading to widespread devastation and disruptions. The torrential rains have resulted in flash floods and landslides, leaving at least two fatalities, 13 injuries, two people missing and hundreds displaced in the Grande-Anse Department, according to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).

The hardest-hit areas by the rains include Cap-Haïtien, Port-de-Paix, Jérémie, and Dame-Marie, where torrential rains flooded homes and the streets, causing cascading damages. However, clear assessments in the northern and northwestern departments have not been reported yet. Residents have been calling on the authorities for assistance.

“In Port-au-Prince, they have bandits and guns shooting everywhere. In Cap-Haïtien, the environment is deplorable,” Victor Roosevelt, a teacher and plumber living in the northern Limbé commune, said. “There’s no preparation, we are vulnerable.”

By contrast, emergency response teams have been mobilized in the Grande-Anse department to aid those affected. “But the scale of the disaster has overwhelmed local resources,” said Jean-Bertrand Enélas, a local businessman in Dame-Marie, about 35 miles southwest of Jérémie—the Grande-Anse Department’s capital city.

Enelas told The Haitian Times that many homes built close to rivers and vulnerable terrains were flooded, and flash floods washed away farms and livestock.

This recent flooding adds to Haiti’s ongoing struggles with natural disasters, exacerbated by political instability, gang-led violence and limited infrastructure. The situation highlights the urgent need for disaster preparedness and support to address the immediate humanitarian crisis and long-term recovery efforts.

The flooding that began in the Grande-Anse on Nov. 30 and extended to western and northern Haiti in the last two days was part of a severe weather event accompanied by heavy rains. It primarily affected several communes, with Jérémie and Dame-Marie being the hardest hit. While specific details about the full extent of casualties are limited, a preliminary assessment from disaster response agencies on Wednesday reported multiple victims, notably 60 displaced and 160 others affected across the southwestern region.

The constant floods during long hours of rainfall have exposed many areas in the Northern Department, particularly Cap-Haïtien and Limbé communes, to drainage malfunction.

Like most cities in the country, Cap-Haïtien’s Town Hall managers acknowledged the city’s drainage system problem during a forum in October 2023 but have yet to take significant steps to solve it. The flooding is a reminder that the Town Hall alone is too weak to fix Cap-Haïtien’s complex issues. 

“The city has reached a level in which the Town Hall will not be able to do anything,” award-winning DJ Emmanuel Fils Jacques, mostly known as DJ Manito, tweeted on Dec. 3. 

“It is time to stop talking about the problem,” Jacques added. “Let’s work to find solutions instead. Cap-Haïtien can’t wait any longer! It’s time to put our hands together. And all of us have to be involved.”

Jacques lives in Canada but regularly visits his hometown, Cap-Haïtien. 

As of Wednesday evening, many residents were pouring water out of their homes with any containers they could find, such as buckets and wash basins. Many streets were filled with brown floodwater, mud, and trash scattered on the road that had started to dry up. Those who were brave enough to leave home hopped over or walked through floodwater, puddles, and mud to reach their destinations. 

Many schools and businesses were closed. Roosevelt has not been reporting to his jobs as a teacher or as a plumber, so the flood will cause residents to struggle financially even more.

Some flooded areas are parts of downtown Cap-Haïtien and surrounding neighborhoods such as Champin. Nearby communes such as Limbé also have some areas with floodwater but not as severe as in Cap-Haïtien, residents said

Cap-Haïtien’s government has yet to respond to The Haitian Times’ request for an interview about its assessment of possible damages and victims caused by the city’s flooding. However, the Town Hall officials published a note on social media to announce that shelters are available and demand that residents in hazardous areas relocate. 

“Because there might be a landslide,” they wrote. “We’re asking people not to cross streets that are flooded and to go look for somewhere that’s more safe to live.”

The rain has stopped but is expected to fall again on Thursday, according to The Weather Channel, which means Haitians may continue to struggle with flooding.“There’s no hope,” Roosevelt, the Limbé resident, said. “I don’t want to say Haiti will perish, but we don’t have hope at all.”

The post At least 2 dead, 13 injured, and hundreds of homes flooded across Haiti after days of heavy rains expose lingering drainage failures appeared first on The Haitian Times.

---

At least 2 dead, 13 injured, and hundreds of homes flooded across Haiti after days of heavy rains expose lingering drainage failures was first posted on December 5, 2024 at 12:56 pm.