At least two people were killed and several houses damaged after two moderate earthquakes rocked southwest Haiti on Monday. The quakes created panic among people and prompted schools and businesses to close.

According to the US Geological Survey, a magnitude 5.3 quake struck at 8:16 am and was followed by a magnitude 5.1 quake nearly an hour later. Both the earthquakes were centered on Haiti’s southern peninsula, west of the capital, Port-au-Prince, and were centered about 10 kilometers (6 miles) below the surface.

Haiti’s civil protection agency confirmed that at least two people died and two others were injured, with at least 35 homes damaged.

Also Read: Why are earthquakes so devastating in Haiti?

Yves Bossé, an elected official for the southern department of Nippes, told The Associated Press that one person died when the quake caused a landslide at a sand mine. Several homes were damaged and businesses were shut down for the day.

“People are scared to go back into their homes,” he said.

Sylvera Guillame, director of Haiti’s civil protection agency for the country’s southern region, told the agency that schools in the area also closed and sent children home as a precaution.

On August 14, 2021, a magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck the  Caribbean nation, killing more than 2,200 people and leaving another 10,000 injured. The quake had a 10-kilometer-deep hypocenter near Petit-Trou-de-Nippes, approximately 150 kilometers west of Port-au-Prince. Tsunami warnings were briefly issued for the Haitian coast.

UNICEF said the quake had affected 650,000 people, including 260,000 children. Close to 137,500 homes were damaged. 

“Early in the morning of 14 August 2021, a 7.2 magnitude earthquake rocked Haiti, causing hospitals, schools and homes to collapse, claiming hundreds of lives, and leaving communities in crisis. By mid-September, around 650,000 people, including about 260,000 children, were estimated to be in need of humanitarian assistance,” UNICEF said. 

With inputs from The Associated Press