'Tragedy, again': Ottawa Haitian community despair in wake of earthquake's destruction

When a 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck southwestern Haiti early Saturday, Ottawa's Dr. Emilio Bazile thought his hometown of L'Asile would be safe.

But as the hours passed, he heard of tragedy after tragedy across the region he called home.

"My sister, her house is destroyed," he said. "The house where my parents live, also destroyed. Five of my family had their houses destroyed."

Many, he said, are now homeless, sleeping outdoors, terrified of aftershocks.

Bazile lost a relative to the earthquake. His cousin's son was crushed in rubble and is unable to walk. And the hospital where he once travelled twice a year to volunteer was destroyed.

"L'Asile lost 16 people," Bazile said. "We have spent all day, talking — did you hear about this person? … It was a terrible day."

WATCH | Haiti reels from 7.2-magnitude earthquake in country's southwest:

Hundreds killed after major earthquake hits Haiti, government agency says

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The quake triggered landslides that blocked roads, and obstructed rescue efforts in at least two communities. Meanwhile, swaths of Haiti are facing growing hunger, and health-care services are overwhelmed by COVID-19.

For Haitians in the Ottawa area, the earthquake, which has already claimed hundreds of lives, is "tragedy, again," in the words of Ketcia Peters, the general director of North-South Development Roots and Culture Canada.

The island nation is still reeling from the assassination of its president by armed gunmen on July 7. Protests, blockades and armed conflict have spread across the island. And Port au Prince, the capital, is still not fully recovered from a devastating 2010 earthquake that killed an estimated 250,000 people.

"The dominant feeling is helplessness and sadness," Patrick Auguste, director general of the Association culturelle de la jeunesse haïtienne de demain, told Radio-Canada.

Auguste said the international community must encourage Haitians to "sit down together and establish an inclusive, global plan in order to take the country back in hand."

Weibert Arthus, Haiti's Ambassador to Canada, told Radio-Canada the Canadian mission there is working to manage a "very complicated situation" in the country.

It's set up an emergency group to help connect Haitians in Canada with families in the south of the country and provide mental health supports if needed.

For Bazile, Saturday's earthquake would normally be an occasion to rush to the island and volunteer his services.

But it's not just COVID-19 that has kept him away. On his last visit to Haiti, in 2019, he barely escaped with his life amid historic anti-government protests.

Bazile is urging Canadians to seek out Haitian aid groups to provide what assistance they can.

But he is not optimistic for a speedy recovery.

"I cannot tell you [that in] the next few weeks, or the next two or three months, their place will get rebuilt, through some kind of help," he said.

"No. I don't think so."