The death toll for flood-ravaged Haiti has risen dramatically to about 1,650 dead

The massive jump in the Haitian figure followed the discovery of more than 1,000 bodies at the remote town of Mapou, according to the head of civil protection in southeast Haiti.

Another 500 found elsewhere in the country’s southeast.

As the flood waters begin to recede in some areas, rescue operations have given way to clean-up teams and hopes of finding survivors have waned.

Authorities now fear that disease will swamp the region as bodies have begun decomposing in the tropical conditions.

Mass graves are being hastily dug or bodies are simply being buried where they are found.

In some cases, there has not been enough time to identify the victims beforehand.

Around 30,000 people have had to be evacuated from their homes, and it is estimated that 13,000 people in the Dominican Republic are now homeless.

In Haiti alone, one of the Americas poorest nations, some 2,400 houses have been destroyed.

International aid has begun flowing in with the European Union pledging an emergency package worth 2 million euros ($AUD 3.4 million).

The US State Department announced that the US Agency for International Development has provided $US 50,000 ($AUD 70,770) and that agency advisers were conducting on-scene assessments for further contributions.

In New York, where the Dominican population measures around 400,000, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said a team of disaster management specialists would arrive on the island on May 27 to determine what help is needed.

But the torrential rains which have lashed the Caribbean for two weeks are showing no signs of abating.

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