Haiti death toll rises to 54

The death toll in the Caribbean from Hurricane Sandy rose yesterday and estimates of damage and destruction it caused grew as more complete assessments emerged from throughout the region.

Two new deaths were recorded in Haiti, bringing the total for the country to 54, said Marie Alta Jean-Baptiste, director of the country’s Civil Protection agency. That means the toll for the Caribbean as a whole is now 71.

Haitian authorities were able to revise the death toll as rivers receded, allowing officials to travel through the storm-drenched southern peninsula. The death toll had been 52.