Officials with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints broke ground Saturday on a temple in Haiti’s capital.
LDS President Thomas S. Monson announced the Port-au-Prince temple on April 5, 2015.
Uruguayan native Walter F. Gonzalez, president of the Caribbean area for the LDS Church, directed the groundbreaking ceremony.
“When I think about this day, I can only think about the everlasting joy and gratitude for all what the temple means in our lives,” Gonzalez wrote in a news release from the LDS Church.
The temple district comprises more than 17,000 Mormons, according to the release. After the Haiti temple is completed, it will temporarily open to the public for tours before its dedication.
The Utah-based LDS Church currently has 182 temples either in operation, under construction or announced throughout the world.
The LDS Church recently opened the doors of its Cedar City temple for a three-week open house before the new temple is dedicated on Dec. 10. The church also recently opened its Meridian, Idaho, temple to the public for a three-week open house.