Mass exodus out of the hell of Port-au-Prince (Feature)

By Silvia Ayuso Jan 20, 2010, 12:24 GMT

Port-au-Prince - What remains of Telusmon Henry-Claude's possessions after last week's devastating earthquake in Haiti fits into a single suitcase. Sitting on it are his two small children.

The parents must stand while they wait for a bus they hope will take them out of the misery. They had waited for days in the hope that help would reach them in Port-au-Prince.

Then they decided to follow tens of thousands of fellow residents of the Haitian capital streaming out of the city. The capital is now a river of people seeking to get away.

Escaping isn't easy. Only the lucky find a mode of transport to take them as far away as possible.

Some Haitians with US passports have been waiting at the airport in the hopes that a plane will at some point bring them to the United States. The unlucky drag their suitcases and bags along the roads leading to the countryside.

The Henry-Claude family has made its way to this bus stop. Someone has told them that buses should take them from here to Cap-Haitien in the northern part of the country.

'The earthquake destroyed our house and everything in it,' says the father. 'We're from the north. We'll stay with relatives there until we can return to Port- au-Prince.'

The number of people waiting for a bus continues to grow. Some wait the whole day. Children make a fuss nearby, while hawkers sell plastic bottles of water.

Some buses drive by without letting anyone in. 'The bus drivers are getting their friends and family out of the city first,' says Esther Pierre.

The young woman seemed to have a promising future just days ago. She was studying at a school of diplomacy and is fluent in several languages. The quake reduced her school to a pile of rubble. It may reopen next year, but it's far from certain.

'I have no money and no idea what to do,' says Pierre. She has little optimism about what the future holds after getting out of Port-au-Prince.

'I just hope things won't be as bad as the destroyed capital. At least out in the country the crowds are not so big. You don't feel the death there, and the air is a little cleaner.'