Mass graves for Haiti dead

2004-09-22 20:48

Port-Au-Prince - Haitian authorities readied mass graves on Wednesday for flood victims, as the 711 recovered bodies rapidly putrefied in the heat amid fears about 1 000 more people may have died.

"Because of the situation of the bodies, we have decided to bury the dead in mass graves," said interior minister Herard Abraham.

In the northern city of Gonaives, where 600 deaths were reported, morgues ran out of space and had no electricity.

Authorities feared the number of deaths would rise dramatically. Prime Minister Gerard Latortue said that, in Gonaives alone, 1&nsbp;000 people were missing, feared dead.

Rescue crews battled to areas in the north of the country that had been cut off by mud or high water.

And, officials pointed out that a number of bodies had washed out to sea, some showing up on the island of La Tortue.

In addition, about 400 people were injured, many by falling roofs or homes that collapsed because of the floods.

In Gonaives, 450 houses were destroyed, according to the Haitian civil protection office.

It said that in all, 250 000 people had to flee their homes, and aid agencies said many people were left with nothing.

Relief teams battled on Wednesday to get emergency supplies to the stricken areas, trucking in anything from bread and water to tents and even body bags.

Also on the list of supplies was serum for tetanus and other immunisations.

"Given the contamination of water sources and the flooding of latrines, there are concerns about possible outbreaks of water-related diseases," said the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

While the first convoys of food, water and medicine were on their way, relief officials flew to the affected area to assess the most-urgent needs.

The World Food Programme arranged for thousands of loaves of bread to be baked and distributed to the homeless.

A team to look after orphans

"For many people, the floods took everything away, so there's no point sending rice or beans, since they cannot cook them," said Guy Gauvreau of the WFP.

The UN Children's Fund (Unicef) has sent a team to look for children orphaned by the killer floods. "We have reports of abandoned children, either because their parents were killed or because they got lost," said Françoise Gruloos, who heads the Unicef mission in Haiti.

The teams also will distribute balloons and games for children, "so there can at least be a semblance of joy," said Gruloos.

Amid fears of looting, security also remained a concern as many police officials deserted their posts and hundreds of prisoners escaped in Gonaives during the floods.

Despite the deployment of nearly 3 000 UN peacekeepers, crime has risen in Haiti since former president Jean-Bertrand Aristide left the country in February.

Aid officials say it will take months and vast amounts of aid to help the flood disaster areas.

- AFP