Desperate Haitians plea for help as Matthew death toll more than 1,000

Record ID: 84432

  • Title: Desperate Haitians plea for help as Matthew death toll more than 1,000
  • Date: 10th October 2016
  • Summary: LES CAYES, HAITI (OCTOBER 10, 2016) (REUTERS) WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME (WFP) TRUCK ROLLING BY AID WORKERS ORGANISING RESIDENTS OUTSIDE SHELTER WAITING FOR AID VARIOUS OF PEOPLE TAKING BAGS OF AID FROM TRUCK WOMEN CARRYING BAGS OF AID ON THEIR HEADS (SOUNDBITE) (Creole) UNIDENTIFIED LOCAL, SAYING: "I don't have a home. All my things went with the water. I'm going to give birth this month. I have nothing. I have been here in the shelter since Monday." WOMAN AND CHILDREN OUTSIDE SHELTER PEOPLE GATHERED OUTSIDE TRUCK FOR AID DISTRIBUTION MAN CARRYING BAGS OF AID ON HIS HEAD MORE OF PEOPLE OUTSIDE WFP TRUCK WAITING FOR AID (SOUNDBITE) (Creole) LOCAL, JAQUELINE JOSEPH, SAYING: "They (authorities) brought us some things but the men stop us from getting things. We can't take it anymore. There is no other place for us to go to, nowhere to sleep." WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME TRUCKS SOLDIER ON DUTY / UN TRUCK PULLS UP NEAR SOLDIER VARIOUS OF PEOPLE OUTSIDE SHELTER RED CROSS OFFICIALS OUTSIDE SHELTER (SOUNDBITE) (Creole) LOCAL, JAQUELINE JOSEPH, SAYING: "Help. Help. We can't stand it anymore. We can't take it anymore." MORE OF PEOPLE OUTSIDE SHELTER PEOPLE ON BIKES ON ROAD RED CROSS VEHICLE OUTSIDE SHELTER
  • Embargoed: 25th October 2016 22:49
  • Keywords: destruction damage Haiti Hurricane Matthew
  • Location: LES CAYES, HAITI
  • City: LES CAYES, HAITI
  • Country: Haiti
  • Topics: Disaster/Accidents,Wind/Hurricane/Typhoons/Tornadoes
  • Reuters ID: LVA00153FCV9J
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Desperate residents of Haiti's hurricane-ravaged Les Cayes scrambled for aid on Monday (October 10) after Matthew tore through the region, flattening homes and leaving many locals with little more than just their clothes on their back.
    Nationally the storm took the lives of more than 1,000 people in Haiti and authorities fear the death toll will continue to climb.
    As flood waters begin to recede the difficult task ahead is providing those left homeless with food, water and shelter.
    "I don't have a home. All my things went with the water. I'm going to give birth this month. I have nothing. I have been here in the shelter since Monday," said this unidentified local.
    World Food Programme trucks have arrived at Les Cayes with aid but chaotic scenes have reportedly marred the distribution of supplies.
    Local Jaqueline Joseph, told Reuters men are stopping some women from getting aid.
    "They (authorities) brought us some things but the men stop us from getting things. We can't take it anymore. There is no other place for us to go to, nowhere to sleep," she said.
    Aid workers now fear that the devastation in Matthew's aftermath will see a surge in cases of cholera in Haiti. Dozens have already been reported.
    "Help. Help. We can't stand it anymore. We can't take it anymore," pleaded Joseph.
    Matthew is the strongest hurricane in the Caribbean since Felix in 2007. It is currently wreaking havoc in the United States where it has been downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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