Bahamas News
Samaritan’s Purse Continues Work in the Devastated Bahamas
October 20, 2019 – FROM DISTRIBUTING CRITICALLY NEEDED EMERGENCY ITEMS TO PROVIDING CLEAN WATER TO CARING FOR INJURED AND SICK PATIENTS, OUR TEAMS ARE SERVING IN JESUS’ NAME.
Roland counted 15 dead bodies floating in the water the day after Hurricane Dorian finally released the Abaco Islands from its deadly grip. The storm completely flattened every home in Roland’s neighbourhood.
“Nothing is here. I have no place to live. I have no job,” he said.
The restaurant where Roland worked is gone. The church where he leads Bible study and sometimes preaches is barely standing.
During the storm, Roland and his family took shelter at the church along with about 300 other people. But when the roof started ripping off and the water was almost waist high, they knew they were in trouble.
While the eye of the hurricane passed over, Roland and the group at the church fled to a nearby government building. If they had not relocated to a safer structure, Roland can’t bear to think of the likely outcome.
“God saved us. Only God saved us,” he said. “Some church members died because they didn’t evacuate. Some members, we don’t even know where they are.”
Samaritan’s Purse provided Roland and the church, which is a community distribution centre, with emergency relief items including hygiene kits, tarp, and solar lights. “Thank you for everything you do for us,” Roland said. “It’s a blessing.”
Ongoing Commitment
Samaritan’s Purse continues to serve families in the Bahamas more than one month after the Category 5 storm devastated the islands.
Our DC-8 cargo plane recently made its 18th trip to the Bahamas, having now delivered a total of 360 tonnes of critically needed emergency relief supplies. We are distributing heavy-duty shelter material (tarp), hygiene kits, kitchen kits, generators, blankets, jerry cans, and solar lights. We have also supplied more than 400,000 litres of clean water.
In addition to ongoing distributions from our base at Marsh Harbour in the Abacos, we are transporting emergency relief items by helicopter to numerous remote communities.
Recently, Samaritan’s Purse volunteers began working on Man-O-War Cay, one of the hardest-hit areas on the Abacos. Volunteers are covering roofs, clearing debris, and doing mud-outs at flooded homes.
Our Emergency Field Hospital also remains up and running in Freeport as our team of medical specialists provides quality treatment, including surgical care, for patients in desperate need. To date, we have seen more than 5,200 patients since the hospital opened on 10 Sept.
Clean Water for Hurricane Survivors
About one hour from Marsh Harbour is Coopers Town, where our team has set up a desalination unit for a community that had already been weeks without clean water for drinking, bathing, cooking, and washing clothes.
“We can’t do without the water. We need water for everything,” said Adella, who came to our water site several times to fill up jerry cans.
Adella rode out Hurricane Dorian at a friend’s house and they thought the terror would never cease. “The ceiling started to cave in, walls were coming apart, sheetrock was falling. The storm kept going and going and going,” she said.
On Grand Bahama Island, which lies 80-plus miles west of the Abacos, Ken Barr-Smith also hunkered down at home. As mayor of West End, the island’s capital, he didn’t want to leave behind elderly residents who weren’t able to evacuate. “I was so afraid,” Ken said. “We didn’t realise what the magnitude of the storm would be.”
Ken is grateful to Samaritan’s Purse for providing water and bringing hope to his hometown. “This is a really big help. We really appreciate it.”
Samaritan’s Purse set up our clean water tap stands on the grounds of a local medical clinic in West End. The tap stands not only serve residents, but also allowed the clinic to operate in the storm’s immediate aftermath.
“West End is a close community. I get to know patients personally,” said Dr. Alicia Genuino.
Dr. Alicia explained that many in West End were still trying to recover from Hurricane Matthew three years ago when Dorian knocked them down again. She said receiving water from Samaritan’s Purse is a huge encouragement to this struggling community.
Hospital Patients Trust God
After Freeport’s main hospital was damaged during the hurricane, we airlifted our Emergency Field Hospital at the request of the World Health Organisation and the Bahamas government.
A stroke brought Zek, a local pastor, to our hospital by ambulance as he was unable to speak or to walk. Our medical team ran tests, provided medication, and worked with Zek and his wife Judy to figure out the next steps for his recovery.
Judy explained that only the week before they had been fighting for their lives during Hurricane Dorian. The couple, along with family members and neighbours, tried to escape from their neighbourhood in the church bus.
“The water was so high the bus was starting to float, so we went to a shelter and spent the night on the second floor. It was a long, long night.”
When they returned home, Judy realised they were facing a long road of recovery. “No one was safe,” she said. “All the houses in our neighbourhood were damaged. My appliances were floating in the water.”
But they aren’t giving up. Judy is trusting God that Zek will recover and one day be able to preach again and to hold their newborn granddaughter.
Carla, another patient, also arrived not long after our hospital opened. Carla had stepped on a nail and her toe and foot were infected to the point that she not only needed antibiotics, but also several surgeries. “The nurses and doctors are amazing. They prayed with me and comforted me. They encourage you in the Lord,” Carla said.
Carla arrived at the hospital so dehydrated that our teams had to administer an IV before they could do surgery. She had been without food or water for about two days while she was trapped in her home during the hurricane.
Carla is grateful to God for saving her life and meeting her physical and spiritual needs at the Samaritan’s Purse hospital.
“Faith in Christ makes us strong,” she said. “You get through by the grace of God.”
To DONATE to Samaritan’s Purse: https://www.samaritans-purse.org.uk/article/samaritans-purse-continues-work-in-the-devastated-bahamas/#donate
SOURCE: SAMARITAN’S PURSE
#TheBahamas, May 26, 2022 – Minister of Agriculture, Marine Resources and Family Island Affairs Hon. Clay Sweeting said The Bahamas has made great strides to work with CARICOM countries to enhance The Bahamas’ poultry industry.
Minister Sweeting traveled with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investments and Aviation Hon I. Chester Cooper, Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture, Marine Resources and Family Island Affairs Leonardo Lightbourne, Food Agricultural Organization (FAO) Ambassador H.E. Winston Pinnock and other top tourism officials to the Agri-Investment Forum and Expo held in Guyana from May 18-20.
The event was held at the Arthur Chung Conference Center under the theme ‘Investing in Vision 25 by 2025’.
During the conference, Minister Sweeting met with several CARICOM leaders in Agriculture. He said he felt encouraged that the region would work together to reduce its food import bill and increase food security.
“In coming to Guyana, we wanted to explore opportunities and options, meet with other countries where we can work with other CARICOM leaders who also share the same focus as The Bahamas in developing their agricultural sector. We are trying to get to the point where we reduce imports by 25 percent by 2025. The Bahamas is a part of CARICOM and so we are committed to that and we’re looking for sectors to do that. We feel that poultry is one of the
sectors that we can do that very quickly and microgreens through vertical farming,” he said.
Minister Sweeting added that many countries are merging their poultry sectors with other food items that they can export.
“As we look around, countries have done very well in the sector. We understand that Guyana is one of the countries that has done well in Agriculture especially in poultry and coconut production. So, it seems that many countries are merging the two industries,” he said. “That’s what seems to be happening across CARICOM. For persons that are interested in investing in Agriculture, other countries are finding ways to work together to fight food insecurity together and as a unit.
“We feel both are bankable products and we are exploring opportunities to garner attraction in both of those. We were able to visit the poultry farm here in Guyana – Bounty Farms – that has done a wonderful job and produce around 25,000 chickens per day, and we are looking to do something of that sort in The Bahamas as well. Once we create this poultry industry in The Bahamas, it would create opportunities for Bahamians, for farmers and persons who want to get involved in producing feed. So, it is a full circle industry where thousands of Bahamians could benefit.”
Minister Sweeting noted that countries like Jamaica, Trinidad and Guyana are eager to assist The Bahamas.
“What is very interesting and exciting is that the Ministers from Guyana and Jamaica have expressed their assistance to us as a country. If we are looking at the poultry sector, they are looking to help us in any way that they can. The comradery that we have had here over the last few days speaks to what we want to do as a CARICOM country and how our deficiencies could assist them and where they have deficiencies, we can work together. The minister of tourism met with other ministers of tourism and offered them some advice on how they can work with their tourism product and where we lack in agriculture they can assist in that manner as well,” he said.
Minister Sweeting said the government will work towards changing policies to encourage chicken production.
“Chicken is something that we can produce very quickly once we have the right policy in place to protect the farmers, the producers and processors and create an industry. A chicken from egg to adult is very minimal time. We want to be very aggressive with this and as soon as we can create a proper policy in this sector, we want to make it happen,” he said.
Release: Bahamas Ministry of Agriculture & Marine Resources
#TheBahamas, May 26, 2022 – Minister of Health & Wellness, the Honourable Dr. Michael R. Darville confirmed that there has been an uptick in positive COVID-19 cases in particular in New Providence over the past three (3) weeks. The Minister added that samples to test for the Omicron BA.2. Variant were collected and sent for genome mapping.
The Disease Surveillance Unit he said has turned specific focus on schools in the country as cases continue to rise. “This Ministry is working closely with the Ministry of Education & Technical & Vocational Training as well as with the unions”, Minister Darville said, “…on ways to mitigate the potential spread in our schools so that we do not disadvantage our children from getting access to education.”
He noted the increase in hospital cases was not directly related to COVID-19 but associated with complications from
Chronic Non-Communicable Diseases (CNCD’s). The Health Minister described it as a “common occurrence in countries battling CNCD’s because the pandemic pushed these comorbidities to the back burner as it relates to usual care”. Hospital officials are working assiduously he said, to address bed spaces to accommodate a surplus in admission cases.
Public Hospitals Authority (PHA) Managing Director Aubynette Rolle added that the number of positive cases are being recorded at the hospital because testing for the virus is a prerequisite for admission. Much of it, MD Rolle said, falls into the category of a secondary diagnosis. She echoed a previous statement by Health Minister Darville who confirmed that there is no cause for alarm when it comes to adequate supplies of medicine.
Bahamians and residents are urged to continue to follow the COVID-19 safety protocols which help to limit the spread of the virus. Persons can also guard themselves from severe COVID-19 infection by getting the COVID-19 vaccine, 1st and 2nd boosters and extended series doses for persons who are moderately to severely immunocompromised. Appointments can be made online at vax.gov.bs or walk-ins are welcomed at vaccination sites. Persons with mobility challenges may request a home visit by emailing vax242.mobile@gmail.com.
The public is encouraged to access community clinics for primary and urgent care and the Princess Margaret Hospital Emergency Department for emergency care only. The hours of operation for the New Providence Polyclinics are:
- Elizabeth Estates Clinic: 9:00a.m. – 9:00p.m., Mondays – Fridays
- Flamingo Gardens Clinic: 8:00a.m. – 9:00p.m., Mondays – Fridays
- Fleming Street Clinic: 8:00a.m. – 8:00p.m., Mondays – Fridays
- South Beach Health Centre: 9:00a.m. – 8:00p.m., Mondays – Fridays.
Release: Ministry of Health & Wellness
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