What happened in the Haitian earthquake of January 2010?

Answer 1

On the 12th of January 2010 at 21:53:10 GMT / 16:53:10 local time, a strike slip fault known as the Enriquillo-Plantain Garden fault, forming part of the transform boundary between the Caribbean and North American plates slipped due to the stresses that had accumulated within the crust.

This released a significant amount of energy in the form of seismic waves which caused ground movements to occur throughout the country of Haiti.

This occurred very close to the Haitian capital city Port-Au-Prince and led to significant damage of buildings and infrastructure and significant loss of life in this and other cities on the island.

Ultimately this resulted in over 230,000 deaths and a further 250,000 people were estimated to have been injured.

Please see the related questions for further details.

Answer 2

The earthquake in Haiti in January 2010 was a devastating magnitude 7.0 quake that caused widespread destruction, resulting in the loss of over 200,000 lives. The capital city, Port-au-Prince, was severely affected, with buildings, homes, and infrastructure destroyed. The disaster led to a humanitarian crisis, with millions of people left homeless, injured, and in need of assistance.