Apocalyptic scenes after Bahamas pulverised by monster Hurricane Dorian
- Thousands left without shelter and likely to face food and water shortages as Bahamas hurricane tracks towards Florida
US officials and counterparts around the world sent out an urgent call for help for the Bahamas after the northernmost islands in the archipelago were pulverised by Hurricane Dorian .
Thousands of residents of Grand Bahama and Abaco islands were without shelter, stranded by flooding and are likely to suffer shortages of food, water and medicine that will worsen without quick action by the international community, according to coordinated messages from the United Nations, the US state department, the US embassy in Nassau and local officials.
“We are in the midst of a historic tragedy,” said the Bahamian prime minister, Hubert Minnis.
“The devastation is unprecedented and extensive.”
The dimensions of the humanitarian disaster began to emerge after the slow-moving storm, which took about 36 hours to cross the 8km-wide Grand Bahama, finally left the country on Tuesday afternoon.
Minnis announced late in the evening that the death toll had risen to seven, with more deaths expected, and predicted that rebuilding would require “a massive, coordinated effort”.