HAITI CAN'T CATCH A BREAK FROM NATURAL DISASTERS

Image from the USGS

Written by: Brian Neudorff

After getting through the 2009 hurricane season with out dealing with any significant tropical system you thought that maybe this would be Haiti's opportunity to rebuild and possibly start some recovery before the 2010 hurricane season and after the devastating 2008 hurricane season. That season brought 4 tropical systems that pounded the very poor country which killed 793, injured 593, destroyed 22,702 homes and damaged nearly 85,000. Things haven't been much better for Haiti going back to the start of the century. Deadly floods in 2007, 2006, 2003 and 2002 along with killer storms in 2005 and 2004.

Earthquake Risk in the Caribbean

Surprisingly, the part of Haiti that experienced Tuesday's quake was actually in a relatively low-risk area for seismic activity in the Caribbean. Large quakes are uncommon in Haiti. The worst quake in Haitian history was probably the May 7, 1842 magnitude 7.7. The quake occurred along a fault in the northern portion of the island. 10,000 Haitians were killed with three hundred of these deaths from a large tsunami generated by the quake. One of the largest cities in Haiti, Cap-Haitien, was destroyed, with the loss of 6,000 lives.

At least there is a sliver of good news for Haiti as the recover and relief efforts begin, the weather should be fairly quiet but warm. This is the dry season in the region, where typically little rainfall occurs through April. Looking at forecast for the region it looks like it will be warm with highs in the upper 80s to near 90 with just a few scattered showers.