West End Grand Bahama Hurricane Recovery
Old Bahama Bay will be the Command Center for all donated hurricane relief supplies in West End, Grand Bahama and is working in cooperation with the Bahamas Government, Local Authorities and NEMA-Bahamas (National Emergency Management Agency). Old Bahama Bay is the largest employer in the western district of Grand Bahama Island.
Hurricane Dorian pulverized the islands for two days, hurling catastrophic winds and relentless rain. It was the strongest storm ever to make landfall in the country.
"We are in the midst of one of the greatest national crises in our country's history," said Prime Minister Hubert Minis. "It is going to require a massive coordinated effort to rebuild."
"Nothing compares to what we went through the past two days," survivor Michael Hynes said. "Almost 48 hours now with nonstop carnage."
Our goal is to raise One Million Dollars. “We exceeded our goal during Matthew which greatly helped rebuild the village of West End and we are hopeful we will exceed Hurricane Dorian’s goal as well since we now must aid not just West End, but all of Grand Bahama and Abaco as well,” said John MacDonald, HOA President, Old Bahama Bay Resort. “We are working in conjunction with Mike Schmidt’s Winners Circle Foundation in this effort. Mike has held fundraising tournaments out of OBB for the last ten years.”
From a CNN report: Swaths of Grand Bahama now look like ravaged wastelands. Injured residents can't reach one hospital because it's blocked by submerged cars.
Not only is the island's airport ruined, a road leading up to it has been replaced by a river of floodwater. Between Grand Bahama and the Abaco Islands, about 60,000 people may be in dire need of food relief, the World Food Programme said.
Macdonald emphasized, “We are adamant that supplies will be received by those in need - not stolen or used by others to profit. We have created processes to roll out our recovery plans as efficient and methodical as humanly possible.”
The Red Cross says more than 13,000 homes – nearly half the number on those two islands – were damaged or destroyed.
CONTACT: Sergio Nativi, Executive Director, Old Bahama Bay, [phone redacted], [email redacted]
guidestar.org/profile/47-4963434
charitynavigator.org/ein/474963434