The sum of US$100,000 is to be donated to hurricane-battered Bahamas as part of an assistance package being put together by the Dominican government. The Bahamas came under heavy Category Five Hurricane Dorian with lots of devastations and several casualties reported on the island. Deputy PM Reginald Austrie said the government will also be assisting children affected by the hurricane in the Bahamas with their education among other things.
Dorian is reported to be the second-strongest Atlantic hurricane on record, with winds moving at a speed of 220 mph. The Foreign Affairs Minister of Bahamas, Darren Henfield, said in a distress video, that the damage across Abaco has been catastrophic with local media reporting five deaths. Authorities also report that about 13,000 houses have been destroyed or severely damaged with residents displaced in the storm.
“From all accounts, we have received catastrophic damage…we have reports of casualties,” Henfield said in the video. “We have reports of bodies being seen. We cannot confirm those reports until we go out and have a look for ourselves. It is not safe to go outdoors. Power lines are down, lamp posts are down. Trees are across the street. It is very dangerous to be outdoors if you don’t have to be outdoors.”
Dominican Deputy PM Reginald Austrie said the Bahamas was among the first countries to offer help when Hurricane Erika and Maria hit Dominica some years back. So the Dominican government will be reciprocating the gesture by assisting back with US$100,000 among other things.
“This morning the cabinet met to assess the information and to indicate what possible assistance that the government can render to the people of the Bahamas immediately,” Austrie said. “While we await further word from the Bahamas to the full extent of the damage, we have to recognize that information flow is not as smoothly as we would expect…but the cabinet has taken a decision to immediately transfer a hundred thousand US dollar to the government and we’re also indicating if it’s possible to assist the children of the Bahamas in their education.”
As part of a larger effort to offer more help, Austrie said the government will meet with senior officials of the Office of Disaster Management (ODM), security chiefs, utility companies, and stakeholders in the private sector to deliberate on what more can be done to help the Bahamas. Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit has contacted his Bahamas counterpart, Dr. Hubert Minnis, to offer the country’s condolences and support while hoping that Dorian will abate soonest without further damage. Barbados and other countries in the Caribbean have also begun to rally support to assist the Bahamas during this period
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