Damage to infrastructure in the 2010 Haiti earthquake
Encyclopedia
Damage to infrastructure in the 2010 Haiti earthquake was extensive and affected areas included Port-au-Prince, Petit-Goâve, Léogâne
, Jacmel
and other settlements in southwestern Haiti
. In February Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive
estimated that 250,000 residences
and 30,000 commercial building
s had collapsed or were severely damaged. The deputy mayor of Léogâne, which was at the epicenter of the earthquake, reported that 90% percent of the buildings in that city had been destroyed and Léogâne had "to be totally rebuilt." Many notable landmark
buildings were significantly damaged or destroyed, including the Presidential Palace
, the National Assembly
building, the Port-au-Prince Cathedral, and the main jail. The Ministry of Education estimated that half the nation's 15,000 primary schools and 1,500 secondary school
s were severely damaged or destroyed. In addition, the three main universities
in Port-au-Prince were also severely damaged. Other affected infrastructure included telephone networks
, radio station
, factories
, and museum
s. Poor infrastructure before the earthquake only made the aftermath worse. It would take half a day to make a trip of a few miles. The roads would also crisscross haphazardly due to disorganized construction.
necessary to respond to the disaster
was severely damaged or destroyed. This included all hospitals in the northwest; air, sea, and land transport facilities; and communication systems. Due to this infrastructure damage and loss of organizational structures, a spokeswoman from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
called it the worst disaster the UN
had ever confronted.
The quake affected the three Médecins Sans Frontières
(Doctors Without Borders) medical facilities around Port-au-Prince, causing one to collapse completely. A hospital in Pétionville
, a wealthy suburb of Port-au-Prince, also collapsed, as did the St. Michel District Hospital in the southern town of Jacmel
, which was the largest referral hospital in south-east Haiti.
The quake seriously damaged the control tower
at Toussaint L'Ouverture International Airport and the Port-au-Prince seaport
. Reported damage to the seaport included the collapse of cranes and containers into the water, structural damage to the pier, waterfront quay areas collapsing into the water with crevassing and slumping of level waterfront ship-unloading dock-work areas, and an oil spill, rendering the harbor unusable for immediate rescue operations. The Gonaïves
seaport, in the northern part of Haiti, remained operational.
The main road linking Port-au-Prince with Jacmel remained blocked ten days after the earthquake, hampering delivery of aid to Jacmel. When asked why the road had not been opened, Hazem el-Zein, head of the south-east division of the UN World Food Programme
said that "We ask the same questions to the people in charge...They promise rapid response. To be honest, I don't know why it hasn't been done. I can only think that their priority must be somewhere else."
There was considerable damage to communications infrastructure. The public telephone system
was not available, and Haiti's largest cellular telephone provider, Digicel
, suffered damage to its network. It was operational by 14 January, but the volume of calls overwhelmed its capacity and most calls could not be connected. Comcel Haiti
's facilities were not severely damaged, but its mobile phone service was temporarily shut down on 12 January. By 14 January the company had re-established 70% of its services. Service on the spur connection to the BDSNi
cable system which provided Haiti with its only direct fibre-optic connectivity to the outside world, was disrupted, with the terminal in Port-au-Prince being completely destroyed.
According to Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF), most of the radio stations in the earthquake struck region went off the air after the earthquake and only 20 out of 50 stations in Port-au-Prince were back on air a week after the earthquake. The stations that were completely destroyed include Radio TV Ginen, Radio Soleil, Radio Ibo and Tropic FM.
RSF also reported that 12 radio stations in the southwestern town of Petit-Goâve and five of Léogâne
's nine stations were badly damaged. The Committee to Protect Journalists
reported that several other stations, including Melodie FM, Radio Caraibes, Signal FM
, and Radio Metropole
, continued to operate. The UN mission's station, Radio Minustah, was disabled by the quake, but returned to the air on 18 January. The Agence France-Presse
office was in ruins, but within days of the earthquake the agency resumed operations from new premises. The offices of the capital's two leading newspapers, Le Nouvelliste
and Le Matin
, were not severely damaged, but for more than a week after the earthquake they were unable to print.
(Supreme Court building), the Superior Normal School, the National School of Administration, the Institut Aimé Césaire, the Palais Législatif
(National Assembly building) and Port-au-Prince Cathedral were damaged to varying degrees. The National Palace
(Presidential mansion) was severely damaged, though President
René Préval
and his wife Elisabeth Delatour Préval
, who were about to enter their house when it "just fell", escaped injury. The Prison Civile de Port-au-Prince was also destroyed, allowing 4,000 inmates to escape into the streets. As of 19 January only 12 had been rearrested. Some of the escaped convicts were reported to have stolen official uniforms, vehicles, and weapons, after starting fires and killing four guards during the breakout.
The headquarters of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti
(MINUSTAH) at Christopher Hotel
and offices of the World Bank
were destroyed. The building housing the offices of Citibank
in Port-au-Prince collapsed, killing five employees. Up to 200 guests at the collapsed Hôtel Montana
in Port-au-Prince are presumed dead. Despite the official search being called off, as of 24 January teams were continuing to look for survivors at the Montana.
Most of Port-au-Prince's municipal government buildings were destroyed or heavily damaged in the earthquake, including the City Hall, which was described by the Washington Post as, "a skeletal hulk of concrete
and stucco
, sagging grotesquely to the left." City officials including Mayor Jean Yves Jason
were left without facilities in which to conduct official business or coordinate recovery efforts. Port-au-Prince had no municipal petrol reserves and few city officials had working mobile phones before the earthquake, complicating communications and transportation.
Minister of Education Joel Jean-Pierre stated that the education system had "totally collapsed". About half the nation's 15,000 primary schools and 1,500 secondary school
s were affected by the earthquake and the three main universities in Port-au-Prince were also "almost totally destroyed." The earthquake also destroyed a nursing school in the capital, one of three such schools in the country, and severely damaged the country’s primary midwifery
school that provided essential training necessary to reduce Haiti’s maternal mortality rate, which is one of the highest in the world. Various Catholic orders reported the destruction and damage of churches, schools and offices.
The clothing industry, which accounts for two-thirds of Haiti's exports, reported structural damage at manufacturing facilities in Haiti. U.S.-based Hanesbrands Inc. reported that three of its four factories had been affected by the quake, with one facility substantially damaged. The Canadian clothing company Gildan Activewear
reported that one of the three textile factories that produce its products had been severely damaged. The Palm Apparel factory complex in Port-au-Prince reported that 500 of its 1800 employees were killed when one of its buildings collapsed.
The Haitian art world
also suffered great losses. Museums and art galleries were extensively damaged
, among them Port-au-Prince's main art museum, Centre d'Art, where many art works were destroyed. The collection at College Saint Pierre also was devastated, as was the collection of priceless murals in the Holy Trinity Cathedral
. Some private art galleries were also severely damaged, including the Monnin Gallery in Pétionville, and the Nader Art Gallery and Musée Nader in Port-au-Prince. Composed of the personal collection of Georges Nader Sr., the Nader collection was worth an estimated US$30-US$100 million. Shortly after the earthquake struck, UNESCO
assigned special envoy Bernard Hadjadj to evaluate damage to artwork.
Buildings shook in Santo Domingo
, the capital of the neighboring Dominican Republic
, but no major damage was reported there.
Léogane
Léogâne is a seaside town in Ouest Department, Haïti. It is located in the eponymous arrondissement, the Léogâne Arrondissement. The port town is located about West of the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince. The town was at the epicenter of the 12 January 2010 earthquake, and was catastrophically...
, Jacmel
Jacmel
Jacmel, also known by its indigenous Taíno name of Yaquimel, is a town in southern Haiti founded in 1698. It is the capital of the department of Sud-Est and has an estimated population of 40,000, while the municipality of Jacmel had a population of 137,966 at the 2003 Census.The buildings are...
and other settlements in southwestern Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
. In February Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive
Jean-Max Bellerive
Jean-Max Bellerive is a Haitian politician and outgoing Prime Minister of Haiti. He resigned on 14 May 2011.-Personal life:Bellerive was born in Port-au-Prince in 1958. As the son of a prominent doctor, he left Haiti at a very young age to study in Switzerland, France, and Belgium...
estimated that 250,000 residences
Residential area
A residential area is a land use in which housing predominates, as opposed to industrial and commercial areas.Housing may vary significantly between, and through, residential areas. These include single family housing, multi-family residential, or mobile homes. Zoning for residential use may permit...
and 30,000 commercial building
Commercial building
A commercial building is a building that is used for commercial use. Types can include office buildings, warehouses, or retail . In urban locations, a commercial building often combines functions, such as an office on levels 2-10, with retail on floor 1...
s had collapsed or were severely damaged. The deputy mayor of Léogâne, which was at the epicenter of the earthquake, reported that 90% percent of the buildings in that city had been destroyed and Léogâne had "to be totally rebuilt." Many notable landmark
Landmark
This is a list of landmarks around the world.Landmarks may be split into two categories - natural phenomena and man-made features, like buildings, bridges, statues, public squares and so forth...
buildings were significantly damaged or destroyed, including the Presidential Palace
National Palace (Haiti)
The National Palace is located in Port-au-Prince—facing Place L'Ouverture near the Champs de Mars—and is the official residence of the Haitian president. It was almost completely destroyed in the 2010 Haiti earthquake...
, the National Assembly
National Assembly of Haïti
The Parliament of Haiti is the legislature of the Republic of Haiti. It sits at the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince. The Parliament is bicameral, the upper house being the Senate of Haiti and the lower house being the Chamber of Deputies of Haiti....
building, the Port-au-Prince Cathedral, and the main jail. The Ministry of Education estimated that half the nation's 15,000 primary schools and 1,500 secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
s were severely damaged or destroyed. In addition, the three main universities
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
in Port-au-Prince were also severely damaged. Other affected infrastructure included telephone networks
Telephone exchange
In the field of telecommunications, a telephone exchange or telephone switch is a system of electronic components that connects telephone calls...
, radio station
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
, factories
Factory
A factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production...
, and museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
s. Poor infrastructure before the earthquake only made the aftermath worse. It would take half a day to make a trip of a few miles. The roads would also crisscross haphazardly due to disorganized construction.
Essential services
Amongst the widespread devastation and damage throughout Port-au-Prince and elsewhere, vital infrastructureInfrastructure
Infrastructure is basic physical and organizational structures needed for the operation of a society or enterprise, or the services and facilities necessary for an economy to function...
necessary to respond to the disaster
Disaster
A disaster is a natural or man-made hazard that has come to fruition, resulting in an event of substantial extent causing significant physical damage or destruction, loss of life, or drastic change to the environment...
was severely damaged or destroyed. This included all hospitals in the northwest; air, sea, and land transport facilities; and communication systems. Due to this infrastructure damage and loss of organizational structures, a spokeswoman from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs , is a United Nations body formed in December 1991 by General Assembly Resolution 46/182...
called it the worst disaster the UN
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
had ever confronted.
The quake affected the three Médecins Sans Frontières
Médecins Sans Frontières
' , or Doctors Without Borders, is a secular humanitarian-aid non-governmental organization best known for its projects in war-torn regions and developing countries facing endemic diseases. Its headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland...
(Doctors Without Borders) medical facilities around Port-au-Prince, causing one to collapse completely. A hospital in Pétionville
Pétionville
Pétion-Ville is a commune and a suburb of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, in the hills east and separate of the city itself on the northern hills of the Massif de la Selle. It was named after Alexandre Sabès Pétion , the Haitian general and president later recognized as one of the country's four founding...
, a wealthy suburb of Port-au-Prince, also collapsed, as did the St. Michel District Hospital in the southern town of Jacmel
Jacmel
Jacmel, also known by its indigenous Taíno name of Yaquimel, is a town in southern Haiti founded in 1698. It is the capital of the department of Sud-Est and has an estimated population of 40,000, while the municipality of Jacmel had a population of 137,966 at the 2003 Census.The buildings are...
, which was the largest referral hospital in south-east Haiti.
The quake seriously damaged the control tower
Control tower
A control tower, or more specifically an Air Traffic Control Tower , is the name of the airport building from which the air traffic control unit controls the movement of aircraft on and around the airport. Control towers are also used to control the traffic for other forms of transportation such...
at Toussaint L'Ouverture International Airport and the Port-au-Prince seaport
Port international de Port-au-Prince
The is the seaport in the capital of Haiti, Port-au-Prince. It suffered catastrophic damage in the 2010 Haiti earthquake.Some of docks and warehouses are operated by the government's Autorité Portuaire Nationale , and some are run by private companies.- History :On 13 June 1872, a German fleet...
. Reported damage to the seaport included the collapse of cranes and containers into the water, structural damage to the pier, waterfront quay areas collapsing into the water with crevassing and slumping of level waterfront ship-unloading dock-work areas, and an oil spill, rendering the harbor unusable for immediate rescue operations. The Gonaïves
Gonaïves
Gonaïves is a city in northern Haiti, the capital of the Artibonite Department. It has a population of about 104,825 people . The city's name derives from the original Amerindian name of Gonaibo. It is also known as Haïti's "independence city"...
seaport, in the northern part of Haiti, remained operational.
The main road linking Port-au-Prince with Jacmel remained blocked ten days after the earthquake, hampering delivery of aid to Jacmel. When asked why the road had not been opened, Hazem el-Zein, head of the south-east division of the UN World Food Programme
World Food Programme
The World Food Programme is the food aid branch of the United Nations, and the world's largest humanitarian organization addressing hunger worldwide. WFP provides food, on average, to 90 million people per year, 58 million of whom are children...
said that "We ask the same questions to the people in charge...They promise rapid response. To be honest, I don't know why it hasn't been done. I can only think that their priority must be somewhere else."
There was considerable damage to communications infrastructure. The public telephone system
Public switched telephone network
The public switched telephone network is the network of the world's public circuit-switched telephone networks. It consists of telephone lines, fiber optic cables, microwave transmission links, cellular networks, communications satellites, and undersea telephone cables, all inter-connected by...
was not available, and Haiti's largest cellular telephone provider, Digicel
Digicel
Digicel is a mobile phone network provider covering parts of Oceania, Central America, and the Caribbean regions. The company is owned by Irishman Denis O'Brien, is incorporated in Bermuda, and based in Jamaica. It provides mobile services in 26 countries and territories throughout the Caribbean...
, suffered damage to its network. It was operational by 14 January, but the volume of calls overwhelmed its capacity and most calls could not be connected. Comcel Haiti
Comcel Haiti
Communication Cellulaire d'Haiti, S.A. or ', now known as Voilà, is a telephone company in Haiti which primarily deals in mobile phone service. It is a subsidiary of US-based Trilogy International Partners.-History:...
's facilities were not severely damaged, but its mobile phone service was temporarily shut down on 12 January. By 14 January the company had re-established 70% of its services. Service on the spur connection to the BDSNi
BDSNi
BDSNi is a fiber optic submarine communications cable system that links the islands of the Bahamas, and also provides connectivity to Haiti via a spur connection.- Connection to Haiti :...
cable system which provided Haiti with its only direct fibre-optic connectivity to the outside world, was disrupted, with the terminal in Port-au-Prince being completely destroyed.
According to Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF), most of the radio stations in the earthquake struck region went off the air after the earthquake and only 20 out of 50 stations in Port-au-Prince were back on air a week after the earthquake. The stations that were completely destroyed include Radio TV Ginen, Radio Soleil, Radio Ibo and Tropic FM.
RSF also reported that 12 radio stations in the southwestern town of Petit-Goâve and five of Léogâne
Léogane
Léogâne is a seaside town in Ouest Department, Haïti. It is located in the eponymous arrondissement, the Léogâne Arrondissement. The port town is located about West of the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince. The town was at the epicenter of the 12 January 2010 earthquake, and was catastrophically...
's nine stations were badly damaged. The Committee to Protect Journalists
Committee to Protect Journalists
The Committee to Protect Journalists is an independent nonprofit organisation based in New York City that promotes press freedom and defends the rights of journalists.-History:A group of U.S...
reported that several other stations, including Melodie FM, Radio Caraibes, Signal FM
Signal FM
Signal FM is a Haitian French language radio station based in the Port-au-Prince suburb of Pétionville. It is a popular station, providing news updates and other information on Haiti...
, and Radio Metropole
Radio Metropole
Radio Metropole is a Haitian French language radio station based in Port-au-Prince. It is a popular station, providing news updates and other information on Haiti.-History:Radio Metropole was founded on March 8, 1970 by Herbert Widmaier...
, continued to operate. The UN mission's station, Radio Minustah, was disabled by the quake, but returned to the air on 18 January. The Agence France-Presse
Agence France-Presse
Agence France-Presse is a French news agency, the oldest one in the world, and one of the three largest with Associated Press and Reuters. It is also the largest French news agency. Currently, its CEO is Emmanuel Hoog and its news director Philippe Massonnet...
office was in ruins, but within days of the earthquake the agency resumed operations from new premises. The offices of the capital's two leading newspapers, Le Nouvelliste
Le Nouvelliste (Haiti)
Le Nouvelliste is a French-language daily newspaper printed in Port-au-Prince, Haiti and distributed throughout the country, particularly the capital and 18 of the country's major cities....
and Le Matin
Le Matin (Haiti)
Le Matin is a daily newspaper published in Haiti. It was founded on April 1, 1907 by Clément Magloire.After a 2-year absence, the newspaper returned in circulation at the beginning of April 2004 under its current ownership. -External links:*...
, were not severely damaged, but for more than a week after the earthquake they were unable to print.
General infrastructure
The buildings of the finance ministry, the ministry of education, the ministry of public works, the ministry of communication and culture, the Palais de JusticeSupreme Court of Haiti
The Supreme Court of Haiti is the highest court in the Haitian legal system. The Supreme Court building is located in Port-au-Prince.-Composition:...
(Supreme Court building), the Superior Normal School, the National School of Administration, the Institut Aimé Césaire, the Palais Législatif
National Assembly of Haïti
The Parliament of Haiti is the legislature of the Republic of Haiti. It sits at the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince. The Parliament is bicameral, the upper house being the Senate of Haiti and the lower house being the Chamber of Deputies of Haiti....
(National Assembly building) and Port-au-Prince Cathedral were damaged to varying degrees. The National Palace
National Palace (Haiti)
The National Palace is located in Port-au-Prince—facing Place L'Ouverture near the Champs de Mars—and is the official residence of the Haitian president. It was almost completely destroyed in the 2010 Haiti earthquake...
(Presidential mansion) was severely damaged, though President
President of Haiti
The President of the Republic of Haiti is the head of state of Haiti. Executive power in Haiti is divided between the president and the government headed by the Prime Minister of Haiti...
René Préval
René Préval
René Garcia Préval is a Haitian politician and agronomist who was the President of the Republic of Haiti from 14 May 2006 to 14 May 2011. He previously served as President from February 7, 1996, to February 7, 2001, and as Prime Minister from February 1991 to October 11, 1991.-Early life and...
and his wife Elisabeth Delatour Préval
Elisabeth Delatour Préval
Elisabeth Débrosse Delatour Préval is a Haitian businesswoman, presidential economic advisor and economist. She has been the First Lady of Haiti since December 6, 2009, when she married President René Préval.-Professional and personal life:...
, who were about to enter their house when it "just fell", escaped injury. The Prison Civile de Port-au-Prince was also destroyed, allowing 4,000 inmates to escape into the streets. As of 19 January only 12 had been rearrested. Some of the escaped convicts were reported to have stolen official uniforms, vehicles, and weapons, after starting fires and killing four guards during the breakout.
The headquarters of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti
United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti
The United Nations Stabilisation Mission In Haiti , also known as MINUSTAH, an acronym of the French translation, is a United Nations peacekeeping mission in Haiti that has been in operation since 2004. The mission's military component is led by the Brazilian Army and the force commander is...
(MINUSTAH) at Christopher Hotel
Christopher Hotel
The Christopher Hotel was a hotel in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, destroyed in the 2010 Haiti earthquake on 12 January 2010....
and offices of the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
were destroyed. The building housing the offices of Citibank
Citibank
Citibank, a major international bank, is the consumer banking arm of financial services giant Citigroup. Citibank was founded in 1812 as the City Bank of New York, later First National City Bank of New York...
in Port-au-Prince collapsed, killing five employees. Up to 200 guests at the collapsed Hôtel Montana
Hôtel Montana
The Hôtel Montana was a hotel in the Pétionville suburb of Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Built in 1946, the hotel was a popular four star tourist resort until the main building collapsed along with most buildings in the city during the 2010 Haiti earthquake...
in Port-au-Prince are presumed dead. Despite the official search being called off, as of 24 January teams were continuing to look for survivors at the Montana.
Most of Port-au-Prince's municipal government buildings were destroyed or heavily damaged in the earthquake, including the City Hall, which was described by the Washington Post as, "a skeletal hulk of concrete
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...
and stucco
Stucco
Stucco or render is a material made of an aggregate, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as decorative coating for walls and ceilings and as a sculptural and artistic material in architecture...
, sagging grotesquely to the left." City officials including Mayor Jean Yves Jason
Jean Yves Jason
Muscadin Jean Yves Jason is a Haitian politician and current Mayor of Port-au-Prince, the capital city of Haiti. Jason was Mayor of Port-au-Prince at the time of the city's destruction during the 12 January 2010 7.0 earthquake, which left the City Hall and most of the city government buildings in...
were left without facilities in which to conduct official business or coordinate recovery efforts. Port-au-Prince had no municipal petrol reserves and few city officials had working mobile phones before the earthquake, complicating communications and transportation.
Minister of Education Joel Jean-Pierre stated that the education system had "totally collapsed". About half the nation's 15,000 primary schools and 1,500 secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
s were affected by the earthquake and the three main universities in Port-au-Prince were also "almost totally destroyed." The earthquake also destroyed a nursing school in the capital, one of three such schools in the country, and severely damaged the country’s primary midwifery
Midwifery
Midwifery is a health care profession in which providers offer care to childbearing women during pregnancy, labour and birth, and during the postpartum period. They also help care for the newborn and assist the mother with breastfeeding....
school that provided essential training necessary to reduce Haiti’s maternal mortality rate, which is one of the highest in the world. Various Catholic orders reported the destruction and damage of churches, schools and offices.
The clothing industry, which accounts for two-thirds of Haiti's exports, reported structural damage at manufacturing facilities in Haiti. U.S.-based Hanesbrands Inc. reported that three of its four factories had been affected by the quake, with one facility substantially damaged. The Canadian clothing company Gildan Activewear
Gildan Activewear
Gildan Activewear Inc. Gildan is a clothing company which produces basic apparel and hosiery. The company's corporate head office is located in Montreal, Canada, and its manufacturing facilities are in Honduras, Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic, the USA and Bangladesh. It also outsources some...
reported that one of the three textile factories that produce its products had been severely damaged. The Palm Apparel factory complex in Port-au-Prince reported that 500 of its 1800 employees were killed when one of its buildings collapsed.
The Haitian art world
Haitian art
Haitian art is a complex tradition, reflecting African, French, Catholic, and tribal and Vodou roots. It as an important representation of Haitian culture and history....
also suffered great losses. Museums and art galleries were extensively damaged
, among them Port-au-Prince's main art museum, Centre d'Art, where many art works were destroyed. The collection at College Saint Pierre also was devastated, as was the collection of priceless murals in the Holy Trinity Cathedral
Holy Trinity Cathedral, Port-au-Prince
The Holy Trinity Cathedral, Port-au-Prince is the main cathedral within the Episcopal Diocese of Haiti. The present Holy Trinity Cathedral is located in downtown Port-au-Prince at the corner of Ave. Mgr. Guilloux & Rue Pavée...
. Some private art galleries were also severely damaged, including the Monnin Gallery in Pétionville, and the Nader Art Gallery and Musée Nader in Port-au-Prince. Composed of the personal collection of Georges Nader Sr., the Nader collection was worth an estimated US$30-US$100 million. Shortly after the earthquake struck, UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
assigned special envoy Bernard Hadjadj to evaluate damage to artwork.
Buildings shook in Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo, known officially as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city in the Dominican Republic. Its metropolitan population was 2,084,852 in 2003, and estimated at 3,294,385 in 2010. The city is located on the Caribbean Sea, at the mouth of the Ozama River...
, the capital of the neighboring Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
, but no major damage was reported there.