SITUATION

Major Hurricane Dorian, the fourth named storm of the 2019 Atlantic Hurricane Season, impacted the Northern islands of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas from Sunday September 1 to Tuesday September 3, 2019 for approximately 68 hours. Hurricane Dorian devastated Abaco, Grand Bahama and the surrounding Cays, with the southern eye-wall remaining “stationary” for approximately 36 hours over Grand Bahama. At the peak of strength, sustained winds increased to 185 mph and gusts up to 220 mph. The estimated rainfall was 12-15 inches and storm surge, 18-23 feet above sea level.

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SUMMARY OF UPDATES

BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS: DEPARTMENT OF DISASTER MANAGEMENT

• The National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC) was deactivated on Wednesday 25 September 2019 at 0500 hours.
• The NEOC’s reconnaissance and reports received from heads of essential services and critical public service providers, have confirmed little to no damage to the Territory and as such it is within our capacity to address the minor impacts.
• Water and Power – Electricity was restored with minimal impact to a few communities; there was no disruption to the water supply.
• Telecommunications – Telecom providers continued to provide service without interruption.
• Road Networks – The entire main road network was cleared, making all roads accessible; minor damages have been addressed.
• Debris Management – No special arrangements are required at this time.
• Health/Medical – No surge in injuries or persons seeking medical assistance were observed.
• Airports – Resumed normal operations on Wednesday 25th September 2019.
• Airport & Sea Ports – Resumed international flights at the Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport and domestic ferry transport between the islands. Resumption of additional international service will depend on the reopening of the ports in the US Virgin Islands.
• Schools – Schools have been reopened on Wednesday 25 September since there were no reported damages.
• Private Sector – resumed operations on Wednesday 25 September 2019 as per usual. No damages were reported in this sector.

For full situation report please click here.

CARIBBEAN DISASTER EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY (CDEMA) ACTIONS (as at September 27, 2019)

• The CDEMA Team Lead continues to provide coordination support to the National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC) in Nassau. The Team Lead is providing advice to the various Emergency Support Functions (ESF) and to the NEOC Directors and will re-deployed (returned to home base) on October 5, 2019.
• CDEMA has partnered with the World Food Programme (WFP) to provide logistical support with the ongoing relief management operations in The Bahamas. CDEMA's two (2) Logisticians are currently working with the WFP to manage incoming relief, temporary warehouse storage and distribution of items to the impacted population. They will be joined next week (September 30 to October 5, 2019) by an additional four (4) Logisticians from the CDEMA Sub-regional Focal Points (SRFPs) of Jamaica, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago as part of a training programme aimed at building the capacity and experience of regional logisticians in relief management.

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SITUATION

Major Hurricane Dorian, the 1st named hurricane of the 2019 Atlantic Hurricane season, formed on Saturday August 24, 2019. At the peak of strength, Dorian, a Category 5 hurricane had sustained winds of 185 mph with gusts of up to 220 mph. Estimated rainfall was 12-15 inches, and storm surge 18-23 feet above sea level.

As a Tropical Storm, Dorian placed four (4) CDEMA Participating States - Barbados, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Lucia and Dominica - under Tropical Storm Warning and one (1) CDEMA Participating State - British Virgin Islands under Hurricane Warning. The impacts on these five (5) states were negligible to minimal. Hurricane Dorian significantly impacted the north-western Bahamas islands of Abaco and Grand Bahama and the surrounding Cayes.

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