‘We are just scratching the surface on the road to recovery’: Hurricane Dorian gets help from Bahamas’ first CrossFit gym

When Hurricane Dorian ripped through the Bahamas last August, the damage was catastrophic. More than 70 people died and an estimated US$4.68 billion in damage was inflicted. For Bahamas resident Miriam Johnson, it was damaging on a magnitude she had never seen before.

“Hurricane Dorian hit the northern islands in the Bahamas the hardest, Abaco and Freeport were devastated,” said the 41-year-old. “Those islands play a major role in our economy in terms of revenue for the Bahamas. With those islands being devastated, many of those residents and many on the main island now have housing, employment and other challenges.”

Of course, Johnson and her husband, Charles, who started the country’s first “box”, as CrossFit gyms are known, in 2011, did not sit back. CrossFit Potcake, located on the main island Nassau, leapt into action like multiple other businesses in the area who weren’t directly hit by the storm, the biggest ever to hit the country.

Many local and international businesses have offered help in the recovery efforts. Online accommodation broker Airbnb has offered working sabbaticals for people to visit the country and help with rebuilding efforts, while the Red Cross has spearheaded multiple relief efforts, from food to temporary shelters.

“Although we live on the main island of Nassau, many of our gym members lost families and friends during the hurricane. People lost everything.”