Haiti to mourn victims of landmark tragedy as arrests follow deadly stampede

Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald on Apr 13, 2026

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

Seven people, including five municipal security agents from the town of Milot and two employees of Haiti’s national heritage protection agency, have been arrested following the weekend tragedy at the country’s historic mountaintop fortress, the Haiti National Police said.

The arrests come after an unauthorized party inside the Citadelle on Saturday left 25 people dead, including school-age children. Another 33 people were hospitalized with various injuries after a stampede erupted inside the crowded space.

Haiti’s National Police made the arrests on Sunday and said an investigation continues into the post-Holy Week incident, which took place after the event was promoted on TikTok.

Authorities estimate that thousands of young people crowded into the cramped site where revelers were crushed trying to get in and out of the only door. Though police provided names of the individuals arrested, no other details were given other than they also seized six cellphones and six security badges. The people arrested are currently in custody at the central police station in the nearby town of Cap-Haïtien, the country’s second-largest city.

The incident has raised urgent questions about who should be held responsible, and prompted the government to declare three days of national mourning beginning Tuesday. Oversight of the facility is split between the town and the Haitian Institute for the Protection of National Heritage.

A United Nations World Heritage site, the fortress was commissioned by the country’s first and only king, Henry Christophe, and built between 1806 and 1820 by tens of thousands of formerly enslaved people,

Initially known as the Citadelle Henri, in honor of the monarch who ruled over a divided Haiti, it later came to be called Laferriere, after the hill on which it stands.

A preliminary report shared with the Miami Herald on Monday by the Ministry of Culture found gaps in security, even though the heritage institute had warned as recently as March 20 about the risks posed by high attendance and limited capacity.

Police were present from Wednesday through Friday, the report said, but had left before the incident occurred.

According to the report, access to the site was restricted to a single gate — a measure intended to control revenue collection but which created a bottleneck.

“There was no structured crowd management,” the report said, noting that people were attempting to exit while others forced their way in. Rain further worsened conditions, intensifying the crush.

The report concluded that what unfolded was not “an isolated incident, but rather stemmed from a series of structural failures.”

Haitian police said the investigation into the incident remains ongoing.

Wesner Joseph, the town’s mayor, told the Miami Herald he had been in office for just 15 days and that the event — promoted on TikTok — had not received a permit.

The tragedy, which drew thousands into a confined space over the weekend, has prompted condolences from foreign embassies in Port-au-Prince as well as nations belonging to the Caribbean Community.

_____