Weather Channel meteorologist claims Haiti is deforested because children 'eat the trees'

Viewers this week expressed outraged at Weather Channel Meteorologist Jen Delgado, who asserted that the deforesting of Haiti could be attributed to hungry children eating the trees.

While reporting on Hurricane Matthew on Monday, Delgado noted that Haiti faced additional risk because the country had fewer trees than the Dominican Republic.

"That's because this whole area has been essentially deforested," she explained. "They take all the trees down, the burn the trees. Even the kids there, they're so hungry, they actually eat the trees."

Delgado quickly felt the backlash from viewers on Twitter.

Weather Channel CEO David Clark apologized after being contacted by viewer Phedra Remarais.

"We are terribly sorry for an on air error and are taking measures to correct it," Clark wrote. "It should not have happened period."

Watch the video clip below from The Weather Channel, broadcast Oct. 3, 2016.