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Devastation in Haiti: Severe devastation
Photo: Twitter
A severe earthquake shook the south of the Caribbean state of Haiti.
The US Geological Survey (USGS) gave the strength 7.2.
A tsunami warning was initially issued, waves of up to three meters in height were expected.
However, the warning was later lifted.
Nevertheless, the authorities reckon with many victims, there are no exact numbers of dead and injured so far.
According to official information, the quake occurred around twelve kilometers from the municipality of Saint-Louis-du-Sud at a depth of around ten kilometers and could also be felt in Cuba and Jamaica.
Numerous homes in Haiti are reported to have been destroyed by the quake.
The exact extent of the damage was initially unclear.
Pictures posted on social media showed buildings and parts of a church in the nearby town of Jeremie being reduced to rubble.
Memories of severe earthquake in 2010
Haiti was nearly devastated by a severe earthquake in 2010.
At the center of the earthquake, which had a magnitude of 7.3, was Haiti's densely populated capital, Port-au-Prince.
Around 222,000 people died and more than 300,000 were injured as a result of the quake.
More than a million people lost their homes.
The damage from the quake was estimated at eight billion US dollars (6.2 billion euros).
Reconstruction got off to a slow start, also due to the political instability.
The country is also currently struggling with severe political upheaval.
In July, Haiti's President Jovenel Moïse was ambushed and shot dead by a heavily armed commando at his residence.
Since then, the state has been governed on a provisional basis.
rai / dpa / Reuters