--- description: Photographer Gael Turine documented the earthquake's aftermath title: Haiti Earthquake: Five Year After image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4e9d57f69ae9749b/69877938f887dc01efe8971f/gael-turine-haiti-061.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [LightBox](/tag/time-section-lightbox/) ## LightBox Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Haiti Earthquake: Five Years After by [Olivier Laurent](/author/olivier-laurent/) ## Olivier Laurent Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 12, 2015 9:00 AM CUT  Port-au-Prince, Haïti, Jan. 19, 2014\. The Croix des Bossales market, where slaves used to be sold, remains the most important market of the country. At the end of the day, shop owners clean the site themselves since the authorities have abandoned the area after loosing its control to the gangs. Port-au-Prince, Haïti, Jan. 19, 2014\. The Croix des Bossales market, where slaves used to be sold, remains the most important market of the country. At the end of the day, shop owners clean the site themselves since the authorities have abandoned the area after loosing its control to the gangs.Gael Turine—VU by [Olivier Laurent](/author/olivier-laurent/) ## Olivier Laurent Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 12, 2015 9:00 AM CUT On Jan. 12, 2010, a devastating earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 struck Haiti, killing more than 160,000 and displacing close to 1.5 million people. Five year later, scars of the tragedy remain in Port-au-Prince, says photographer Gael Turine, who has spent the last 10 years photographing the country. “When you walk around the country’s capital Port-au-Prince, you still see half-destroyed buildings around town,” he tells TIME. “The wounds are still here, and everyone says that they’re living in worse conditions than before.” Given the costs of recovery from such a shattering catastrophe, it might seem logical that an impoverished country such as Haiti would still feel the effects a half-decade later, if it weren’t for the unprecedented help the Republic received in its aftermath. “When you look at the history of humanitarian relief, there’s never been a situation when such a small country has been the target of such a massive influx of money and assistance in such a short span of time,” says Turine. “On paper, with that much money in a territory the size of Haiti, we should have witnessed miracles; there should have been results.” And yet the situation on the ground is dire, says the Belgian photographer: “Two years ago, there were still refugee camps in Port-au-Prince’s center. Now, they are gone, but the people have been merely displaced. They now live in the city’s suburbs – in these prefabricated shacks – \[with\] a parallel economy.” For Turine, the international community has crushed the country’s hopes. “NGOs are pulling out, creditors have stopped investing,” he says. “Haitians find themselves in a social and economic situation that is worse than before the earthquake.” And yet, its people subsist. “I feel there’s this collective energy that comes from how close all Haitians live with each other. There’s this idea of collectivity, which leads to certain neighborhoods taking control of their own fate – cleaning up their streets, opening up their schools, etc. They have been forced to take over from the government, which is unable to offer these services.” Still, he has no doubt that Haitians will weather the crisis, even as it stretches on. “It’s already a victory to see that the country hasn’t exploded, especially when you see what has happened in the last decades — from Jean-Claude Duvalier to Jean-Bertrand Aristide, from the cholera to hurricanes, the country has faced a succession of social, political and environmental crises,” Turine says. “The fact that Haitians haven’t succumbed to madness shows that they’re resilient.” [**_Gael_**](http://www.agencevu.com/photographers/photographer.php?id=234 "undefined")[**_Turine_**](http://www.agencevu.com/photographers/photographer.php?id=234 "undefined")_is a Belgium photographer represented by_ [_Agence VU’_](http://www.agencevu.com "undefined")_._ **_Alice Gabriner_** _and_ **_Phil Bicker_**_, who edited this photo essay, are respectively the International Photo Editor and a Senior Photo Editor at TIME._ **_Olivier Laurent_** _is the editor of TIME LightBox. Follow him on_ [_Twitter_](http://twitter.com/olivierclaurent "undefined") _and_ [_Instagram_](http://instagram.com/olivierclaurent "undefined") _@olivierclaurent_  Port au Prince, Haïti, Nov. 28, 2014\. The city keep on extending on the seaside and the new districts are poor and densely populated. Gael Turine—VU  Port-au-Prince, Haïti, Jan. 12, 2013\. A memorial mass has been organized in front of the cathedral destroyed by the 2010 earthquake. Gael Turine—VU  Port-au-Prince, Haïti, Jan. 14, 2014\. The ''La Salinne'' district has been set up by former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. This estate, unique in the city, is still a safe place for former leaders and members of the ''Chimères'' – gang in Aristide's service – who live there and hide from the police. Gael Turine—VU  Port au Prince, Haïti, April 21, 2013\. A playground destroyed by the 2010 earthquake in the ''Fort National'' district. District's children play nevertheless with this damaged basketball backboard. Gael Turine—VU  Port au Prince, Haïti, April 15, 2013\. In the Salomon market, in the city center, a sentence written on the wall says that the Salomon Squad, a group of young people, remembers Elène, a deceased young girl who used to live in the neighborhood. Gael Turine—VU  Port-au-Prince, Haïti, Jan. 19, 2014\. The Croix des Bossales market, where slaves used to be sold, remains the most important market of the country. At the end of the day, shop owners clean the site themselves since the authorities have abandoned the area after loosing its control to the gangs. Gael Turine—VU  Port-au-Prince, Haïti, Jan. 15, 2013\. In ''La Salinne'' district, unemployment and the lack of businesses are all the more noticeable since the state doesn't plan to help an area that openly supports the opposition. Gael Turine—VU  Port-au-Prince, Haïti, Jan. 12, 2013\. The camp for people who were displaced following to the earthquake, located on Saint-Anne square, has been destroyed by rioters paid by city hall. The authorities, with the agreement of some neighbors and the complicity of a gangs, had decided to destroy the camp and clean the square. As a symbol and to make the message clear, the date of Jan. 12, day of the anniversary of the 2010 earthquake, was been chosen. Gael Turine—VU  Port-au-Prince, Haïti, Jan. 15, 2014\. These women prefer walking rather than taking the bus, which often gets stuck in traffic. Gael Turine—VU  Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Nov. 6, 2013\. This handicapped man, like some other very poor and isolated people, spend the whole day inside the cemetery, begging for money and food. Gael Turine—VU  Port-au-Prince, Haïti, Jan. 15, 2013\. The market of Croix des Bossales is the former slaves market of the city. Gael Turine—VU  Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Nov. 11, 2013\. The "Cité de Dieu" neighborhood in Martissant area used to be one of the most dangerous places in the Haitian capital. Gael Turine—VU  Port-au-Prince, Haïti, Jan. 16, 2014\. A young man waits for an opponent for his rooster. Some Haitians only rely on these fights to make a living. Gael Turine—VU  Port au Prince, Haïti, Nov. 28, 2014\. In the Martissant district, families have set up camp where their houses used to be built. Gael Turine—VU  Port-au-Prince, Haïti, May 17, 2014\. A young graffiti artist. 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