Still reeling from Dorian, Bahamas faces tropical storm Humberto
Aid efforts suspended and airports closed as thousands continue to need food, water and shelter
Tropical storm Humberto moved away from the Bahamas on Saturday after dumping rain on parts of the archipelago's northwest region that was already hit by Hurricane Dorian two weeks ago.
Humberto lashed the islands as UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres visited the Bahamas to support humanitarian efforts in the wake of Dorian, which hit as a Category-5 storm that left thousands in need of food, water and shelter. The list of missing stands at an alarming 1,300 people and the death toll at 50. Officials caution that list is still preliminary, and many people could just be unable to connect with loved ones.
Humberto's rains, which fell on Abaco Island, threatened to exacerbate the nation's problems, but conditions appeared to normalize Saturday afternoon.
After issuing a tropical storm warning earlier in the day, the Bahamian government discontinued that warning as Humberto continued to move away from the island nation. At 5 p.m. EDT, the storm was located about 113 kilometres north of Great Abaco Island, moving 11 km/h north-northwest with maximum sustained winds of 80 km/h.
The U.S. National Hurricane Centre says the storm is expected to become a hurricane by Sunday night or early Monday, but it won't threaten land by the time it intensifies to that strength. Still, Officials warn that the storm could cause dangerous swells along the coasts of Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina later this weekend and early next week.
Dexter Wilson, a 40-year-old maintenance man who was helping a friend put a blue tarp on a damaged roof in Grand Bahama under a bright sun, said he was worried about his brother in Abaco given the tropical storm.
"He's still there. I don't know why," he said.
The hurricane centre said most of the heavy squalls were occurring north and east of the centre of the storm, which was passing just east of Abaco. However, government officials in the Bahamas took no chances and urged people in damaged homes to seek shelter as they announced that aid efforts would be temporarily affected.
"The weather system will slow down logistics," said Carl Smith, spokesperson for the National Emergency Management Agency.
Interruption in aid
The distribution of meals in Grand Bahama was reduced ahead of the storm, and a spokesperson for the United Nations World Food Program said all flights into its logistics hub in Marsh Harbor in Abaco were suspended.
Later Saturday, WFP spokesman Herve Verhoosel said the agency had resumed activities in Marsh Harbor.
"Our team is back at work to support the population and relief organizations," Verhoosel said in a statement.
Dave McGregor, president and COO of the Grand Bahama Power Company, said crews would resume restoring power as soon as possible.
"We are back in storm preparation mode again, unfortunately," he said.
The UN's Guterres, who was in Abaco on Saturday, said he was "horrified" by the level of "systematic devastation."
"Hurricane Dorian has been classified as Category 5. I think it's Category Hell," the secretary-general said after his visit.
He said storms powered by climate change had grown more intense, and implored the international community to learn from the example of Abaco and Grand Bahama and provide support.
"We have always had many hurricanes, but now they are more intense, and they are more frequent," he said.