GONAIVES, Haiti (AFP) - Haiti dug mass graves for victims of floods that killed more than 700 people, with 1,000 others missing and feared dead, amidst appeals for international relief to help the country after its latest disaster.
The northern town of Gonaives, which had 600 of the reported 711 deaths, remained paralysed and mass graves were needed quickly for bodies rapidly putrefying in the heat. Morgues ran out of space and the town had no electricity.
"Because of the situation of the bodies, we have decided to bury the dead in mass graves," said Interior Minister Herard Abraham.
Dead animals remained in the streets of Gonaives as inhabitants tried to find missing family and possessions.
Authorities feared the number of deaths would rise dramatically. Prime Minister Gerard Latortue said that in Gonaives alone, 1,000 people were missing and feared dead.
Rescue crews battled to areas in the north of the country that have been cut off by mud or high water. And officials said that several bodies had washed out to sea, some turning up on the island of La Tortue.
In addition, about 400 people were injured, many by falling roofs or homes that collapsed because of the floods.
In Gonaives, 450 houses were destroyed, according to the Haitian Civil Protection Office. It added that 250,000 people had fled their homes.
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan urged the world community to send speedy help to the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere, which also suffered huge casualties in floods earlier this year.
"The secretary general urges the international community to quickly provide Haiti, one of the world`s poorest countries, the support it needs to recover from this devastating natural disaster," said a spokesman for Annan.
France, Spain, Argentina, Chile and other nations have promised aid and relief teams were battling to get supplies to the stricken areas, trucking in anything from bread and water to tents and even body bags.
Also on the list of supplies was serum for tetanus and other immunisations.
"Given the contamination of water sources and the flooding of latrines, there are concerns about possible outbreaks of water-related diseases," the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said in a statement.
While the first convoys of food, water and medicine were on their way, relief officials flew to the affected area to assess the most urgent needs.
The World Food Program arranged for thousands of loaves of bread to be baked and distributed to the homeless.
"For many people, the floods took everything away, so there`s no point sending rice or beans, since they cannot cook them," said Guy Gauvreau of the WFP.
The UN Children`s Fund (UNICEF) has sent a team to look for children orphaned by the killer floods. "We have reports of abandoned children, either because their parents were killed or because they got lost," said Francoise Gruloos, who heads the UNICEF mission in Haiti.
The teams also will distribute balloons and games for children, "so there can at least be a semblance of joy," said Gruloos.
Amid fears of looting, security also remained a concern after many police officials deserted their posts and hundreds of prisoners escaped in Gonaives during the floods.
Despite the deployment of nearly 3,000 UN peacekeepers, crime has risen in Haiti since former president Jean-Bertrand Aristide left the country in February.
Aid officials say it will take months and vast amounts of aid to help the flood disaster areas.
Ranked among the world`s poorest nations, Haiti had already been further impoverished by flooding and civil strife earlier this year.
"We have launched an appeal for international aid," said Latortue. "You know Haiti cannot overcome such a disaster on its own."
In the Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti, authorities said the storm killed 27 people. There were also nine dead in the Bahamas and two in Puerto Rico.