Drama in the Southeast Department.
Sixteen people lost their lives in the locality of Seguin, in the communal section of Fond Jean Noël, in the town of Marigot in Haiti.
After attending the funeral of an individual, several of the victims in a small house all succumbed.
A resident of the area, having heard a suspicious noise in the room where the victims were, tried to offer help. She also passed away after returning home.
For the moment, several hypotheses are being studied by the government regarding the circumstances of this tragedy.
“At our arrival, we discovered the lifeless bodies of eight men, five women (one of whom was pregnant), two young boys, and a little girl. After a meticulous analysis of the scene and the environment, Dr. Djemina Deshommes favored the hypothesis of carbon monoxide poisoning as the main cause of death,” according to the authorities who visited the area.
Jean Jacques Peterson, also present at the scene, was urgently transported to the hospital for necessary care.
“It is noteworthy that before our intervention, Jean Jacques Peterson had been extracted from the house in critical condition by residents and transferred by helicopter to the hospital in Mirebalais. According to information from the Seguin health center, he had a saturation of 62, indicating a lack of oxygen,” according to the departmental delegate of the Southeast, Mr. Pierre Michel Lafontant, contacted by the CaribbeanTelevisionNetwork editorial team.
However, the hypothesis of carbon monoxide poisoning could be ruled out given that not all the victims were in the same place. At least five other deceased individuals were not in the same room as the vast majority of the victims.
The husband of one of the individuals present in the house and their four children also lost their lives.
“The bodies were found in different positions, some face down, others with their backs against the ground, and two in a sitting position leaning against a bed,” reads the report.
The news of the deaths of the sixteen individuals in Fond Jean-Noel raises concerns within the local population and the government, which announces “a thorough investigation to determine the exact circumstances of this tragic incident.”
Although related by family ties, not all the victims are from a single family, contrary to the initially circulated information.
The identities of the sixteen deceased individuals are also known. They are:
1- Odilon Louis Jacques
2- Getha Tida
3- Gervens Louis Jacques
4- Toutou Tima
5- Meristil Pierre
6- Sonia Delmo
7- Gesner Petit-Jean Jacques
8- Nerlande Bellevue
9- Vladimir Petit Jean-Jacques
10- Gerson Jean- Jacques
11- Rosemène Petit Jean- Jacques
12- Déborab Petit Jean-Jacques
13- Réginald Saintiche
14- Michaël Petit Jean-Jacques
15- Noël Wigens
16- Evenson Petit Jean-Jacques
Cases of death due to carbon monoxide poisoning are quite common, causing the death of nearly 30,000 people annually worldwide.
On December 18, 2020, three people were found dead and seven others in critical condition at the Hotel Ti Niche in Delmas 19. The hypothesis of carbon monoxide poisoning was also mentioned at the time. However, no official information was communicated about the circumstances of the tragedy.
“Carbon monoxide (CO) is a colorless, odorless, toxic, and potentially lethal gas resulting from incomplete combustion, regardless of the fuel used: wood, butane, coal, gasoline, fuel oil, natural gas, petroleum, propane. It diffuses rapidly in the environment,” according to the French Ministry of Public Health, stating that “each year, this toxic gas is responsible for about a hundred deaths in France.”
