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Before hurricane Ike hit, Haitians were already suffering from skyrocketing food prices that sparked nationwide protests and forced out the prime minister in April.

Now, nearly two weeks after a muddy deluge killed more than 100 and left tens of thousands homeless in this city, hunger is rampant as humanitarian aid is delayed and prices soar even higher.

Four years ago, tropical storm Jeanne killed some 3,000 people in this city and the surrounding area. The death toll from Hanna has not been as high, but Gonaives residents and aid workers say that in many ways the devastation has been worse.

The U.S. government has forecast 14 to 18 tropical storms will form during the six-month season that began on June 1, more than the historical average of 10. Josephine was already the 10th, forming before the statistical peak of the season on September 10.

In Haiti, heavy rains caused severe flooding in the northern port city of Gonaives, where thousands of people died four years ago during a similar catastrophe."The city is flooded and there are parts where the water gets to 2 meters (6.5 feet)," said civil protection director Alta Jean-Baptiste. "A lot of people have been climbing onto the tops of their houses since last night to escape the flooding."

After arriving for a two-day visit on Friday, Josette Sheeran said feeding the victims is a top priority, but she also urged agriculture officials to buy seeds and other produce from local farmers to revive the economy.

"Haiti wants to grow its own food and to be self-sufficient, not just waiting on food assistance while they recover from this devastating storm," Sheeran said.

Rene Preval, Haiti's president, told the United Nations General Assembly on Friday that his country requires long-term reconstruction efforts, beyond immediate food and disaster relief. "We have to break this paradigm of charity in our approach to international co-operation … because charity has never helped any country to get out of underdevelopment," he said.

He called the result "a catastrophe of major proportions." The capital city is surrounded by hills to which "little flimsy houses" were struggling to hold on, he said.

Eighty percent of Haiti's 9 million residents live under the poverty line and more than half -- 54 percent -- live in abject poverty, according to the CIA Factbook.

In 2008, four tropical storms damaged the transportation infrastructure and agricultural sector, on which two-thirds of Haitians depend, mainly as subsistence farmers.