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Global Ideas

Natural disasters in Haiti

Haiti's geography makes the country particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change.

A damaged house (Foto: AP)

Haiti after Hurricane Sandy

Haiti has experienced recurring natural catastrophes in the past which have strongly dented the country's development. Due to its large coastal areas, the country is extremely vulnerable to hurricanes. And Haiti lies on the border between the Caribbean and the North American continental plate – a region that's extremely prone to earthquakes. On January 12, 2010, a quake near the capital Port-au-Prince killed an estimated 220,000 people. Almost a third of the country's population was affected by the disaster. Three years on, many people continue to suffer the consequences. From the estimated 1.5 million who became homeless after the quake, some 350,000 people still live in refugee camps. The reason Haiti was so badly hit by the disaster and is only slowly getting back on its feet also has to do with the fact that the country suffers from chronically high levels of poverty and malnutrition.

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