Haiti earthquake: At least 14 dead as aftershocks rock island nation

PORT-DE-PAIX, Haiti — At least 14 people were killed and almost 200 injured when a 5.9-magnitude earthquake struck northern Haiti Saturday night, Reuters reported.

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Update 6:35 p.m. EDT Oct. 7: As the death toll in Haiti rises, a 5.2-magnitude aftershock rattled the northern part of the island nation, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, a day after more than a dozen people were killed by a strong earthquake.

Emergency response efforts were underway Sunday in the harder-hit areas of  Port-de-Paix, Gros-Morne, the town of Chansolme and the northern island of Tortuga, according to a statement from Haiti's civil protection agency, Reuters reported.

“The shock was felt across all departments of the country, giving rise to panic in several towns,” agency officials said.

Parts of Haiti are still recovering from a powerful 2010 earthquake that decimated the island and killed as many as 230,000 people.

Update 11:10 a.m. EDT Oct. 7: Haiti's civil protection agency said in a statement that the hardest-hit areas are Port-de-Paix, Gros Morne, Chansolme and Turtle Island, The Associated Press reported. The quake has left 135 people injured The AP reported.

Original report:

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the quake, which hit about 8:11 p.m. EDT, occurred 11.8 miles northwest of Port-de-Paix and about 7.3 miles under the surface. Police said at least seven people died near the epicenter of the quake, Reuters reported.

Haiti is "especially vulnerable to earthquakes" because "many live in tenuous circumstances," The Associated Press reported. A 7.1-magnitude quake in 2010 killed hundreds of thousands of people there.

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