Port-au-Prince, February 26: The first heavy rain since the devastating earthquake doused Haiti’s capital, soaking hundreds of thousands of homeless in the city.
The storm hit last night as relief officials changed track on dealing with quake survivors, delaying plans to build big refugee camps outside the capital, asking the homeless to pack up their tents and tarps and return to destroyed neighbourhoods.
People dashed for shelter down streets streaming with runoff from the driving tropical rain. The downpour swept trash along roadside gutters, clogging drains and turning depressions into ponds.
Some women stripped naked and took advantage of the downpour to take a shower as there are no bathing facilities in overcrowded tent camps.
With the official rainy season still a month away, forecasters warned that the storm, the first since the January 12 quake, could bring floods and mudslides to a population in a perilous state. Many dwellings are severely damaged or clinging to the sides of hillsides.
People who lined up at a downtown site yesterday morning to register for the new campaign to resettle more than 1.2 million Haitians expressed skepticism and were dismissive of the plan, and relief officials acknowledged its immense challenges.
—-Agencies