Powerful moment Bahamas residents evacuated by US Coast Guard during Hurricane Dorian
- 5 years ago
The powerful moment is captured last Thursday (September 5) showing desperate residents of Treasure Cay, Bahamas evacuating the island via the United States Coast Guard after Hurricane Dorian's potent Category 5 peak caused havoc.
The U.S. Coast Guard used the tennis courts at the Treasure Cay Beach, Marina & Golf Resort to evacuate residents and tourists in need of medical attention.
A woman in need of diabetic medication and treatment along with her two young sons were evacuated as well as an Austrian family who had been vacationing in Treasure Cay when the storm hit, according to Jessica Robertson, a local resident who captured the footage.
"I am heartbroken by what has happened to my friends, my country. Until last Thursday, we had only seen a few aerial images of Treasure Cay and from above it didn't look too bad.... then I got there on the ground and realized just how awful it is," Robertson, a former journalist, told Newsflare.
Hurricane Dorian first hit the Abaco Islands, where Treasure Cay is located, as a Category 5 storm with 185 mph winds. That ties it for the strongest landfall on record.
Meteorologists believe that winds might have even gusted up to 220 mph, akin to a tornado except dozens of miles wide. Winds of that speed have the power to destroy whole houses, or at least rip off the roofs. Dorian is offically tied for being the second-strongest hurricane (in terms of windspeed) ever recorded in the Atlantic.
There’s no access to clean water or sanitation in many communities, the UN reports.
Both Grand Bahama and the Abacos may need around 60,000 gallons of water delivered each day. In all, more than 60,000 people may need food and water assistance.
"One of the hardest things I've ever had to do was walk through all those people who were so desperate to evacuate to get on the charter that was waiting to pick us up last Thursday. Of course we filled every empty seat on all the relief flights we have flown in but... in that moment I felt horrible. True survivors guilt," Robertson said.
The U.S. Coast Guard used the tennis courts at the Treasure Cay Beach, Marina & Golf Resort to evacuate residents and tourists in need of medical attention.
A woman in need of diabetic medication and treatment along with her two young sons were evacuated as well as an Austrian family who had been vacationing in Treasure Cay when the storm hit, according to Jessica Robertson, a local resident who captured the footage.
"I am heartbroken by what has happened to my friends, my country. Until last Thursday, we had only seen a few aerial images of Treasure Cay and from above it didn't look too bad.... then I got there on the ground and realized just how awful it is," Robertson, a former journalist, told Newsflare.
Hurricane Dorian first hit the Abaco Islands, where Treasure Cay is located, as a Category 5 storm with 185 mph winds. That ties it for the strongest landfall on record.
Meteorologists believe that winds might have even gusted up to 220 mph, akin to a tornado except dozens of miles wide. Winds of that speed have the power to destroy whole houses, or at least rip off the roofs. Dorian is offically tied for being the second-strongest hurricane (in terms of windspeed) ever recorded in the Atlantic.
There’s no access to clean water or sanitation in many communities, the UN reports.
Both Grand Bahama and the Abacos may need around 60,000 gallons of water delivered each day. In all, more than 60,000 people may need food and water assistance.
"One of the hardest things I've ever had to do was walk through all those people who were so desperate to evacuate to get on the charter that was waiting to pick us up last Thursday. Of course we filled every empty seat on all the relief flights we have flown in but... in that moment I felt horrible. True survivors guilt," Robertson said.