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| Bahamas Stunned as Water Recedes: ‘It’s Like a Bomb Went Off’ | Bahamas Stunned as Water Recedes: ‘It’s Like a Bomb Went Off’ |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| TREASURE CAY, Bahamas — The pilot was anxious to help: he had gathered generators, diapers, tuna fish and other supplies. The people living on the islands in the Bahamas devastated by Hurricane Dorian needed them, immediately. | TREASURE CAY, Bahamas — The pilot was anxious to help: he had gathered generators, diapers, tuna fish and other supplies. The people living on the islands in the Bahamas devastated by Hurricane Dorian needed them, immediately. |
| But he wasn’t sure if there was anywhere to land. | But he wasn’t sure if there was anywhere to land. |
| Flying with the pilot over the hardest-hit areas — the islands of Abaco and Grand Bahama — The New York Times saw homes turned to matchsticks and boats piled in heaps. | Flying with the pilot over the hardest-hit areas — the islands of Abaco and Grand Bahama — The New York Times saw homes turned to matchsticks and boats piled in heaps. |
| Harbors, supermarkets, a public hospital, airport landing strips — all had been damaged or blown to smithereens, frustrating rescue efforts. | Harbors, supermarkets, a public hospital, airport landing strips — all had been damaged or blown to smithereens, frustrating rescue efforts. |
| Hurricane Dorian, which made landfall on Sunday as a Category 5 hurricane and then lingered for days, not only left many residents in the most damaged islands without jobs or a place to live. It also stripped away the services required to meet their most immediate needs — like fresh water, food and medical care. | Hurricane Dorian, which made landfall on Sunday as a Category 5 hurricane and then lingered for days, not only left many residents in the most damaged islands without jobs or a place to live. It also stripped away the services required to meet their most immediate needs — like fresh water, food and medical care. |
| “It’s like a bomb went off, honestly,” said Julie Sands, who lives in Cherokee Sound, in Abaco Island. | “It’s like a bomb went off, honestly,” said Julie Sands, who lives in Cherokee Sound, in Abaco Island. |
| With the storm now barreling toward the Eastern Seaboard as a Category 2 hurricane and the floodwaters receding in the islands, the trail of devastation is slowly becoming clear as residents began tallying their losses. | With the storm now barreling toward the Eastern Seaboard as a Category 2 hurricane and the floodwaters receding in the islands, the trail of devastation is slowly becoming clear as residents began tallying their losses. |
| Families picked through the ruins of their homes, many of them too overwhelmed to fathom next steps. Some aid groups figured nearly half of the homes on the two islands were either destroyed or severely damaged. | Families picked through the ruins of their homes, many of them too overwhelmed to fathom next steps. Some aid groups figured nearly half of the homes on the two islands were either destroyed or severely damaged. |
| Some residents just wanted to know the fate of loved ones. | Some residents just wanted to know the fate of loved ones. |
| Antonia Nixon, 19, stood at a private terminal where relief missions were concentrated in Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas, hoping that relatives would be among the passengers brought in on helicopter evacuation flights Wednesday morning. | Antonia Nixon, 19, stood at a private terminal where relief missions were concentrated in Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas, hoping that relatives would be among the passengers brought in on helicopter evacuation flights Wednesday morning. |
| They live in northern Abaco, she said, where there has been a practical communications blackout since the storm hit. | They live in northern Abaco, she said, where there has been a practical communications blackout since the storm hit. |
| “My house is gone, and I’m in Nassau and I have no clue what my family is doing,” she said, breaking into sobs. “I just want help.” | “My house is gone, and I’m in Nassau and I have no clue what my family is doing,” she said, breaking into sobs. “I just want help.” |
| Long lists of the missing circulated on social media groups, where families logged updates in real time. | Long lists of the missing circulated on social media groups, where families logged updates in real time. |
| “Mr. Atkinson contacted his son to let them know they are all alive,” read one entry for a family on Grand Bahama. Others were more worrying: “Have you seen or heard from my son Raynor,” wrote his mother, Sheron Johnson. | “Mr. Atkinson contacted his son to let them know they are all alive,” read one entry for a family on Grand Bahama. Others were more worrying: “Have you seen or heard from my son Raynor,” wrote his mother, Sheron Johnson. |
| The montage of grief and fear was matched in its intensity by the wreckage left behind. From the air, the scene in the islands was a grim study in contrasts. | The montage of grief and fear was matched in its intensity by the wreckage left behind. From the air, the scene in the islands was a grim study in contrasts. |
| In Marsh Harbour, the largest city on Abaco Island, residences lay in ruins, while the estates at Baker’s Bay appeared unscathed. | In Marsh Harbour, the largest city on Abaco Island, residences lay in ruins, while the estates at Baker’s Bay appeared unscathed. |
| Only a handful of people could be seen walking around. One pair rode past the demolished trees on their bicycles. The single road leading in and out of Marsh Harbour was still flooded out in places. | Only a handful of people could be seen walking around. One pair rode past the demolished trees on their bicycles. The single road leading in and out of Marsh Harbour was still flooded out in places. |
| From the sky, Peter Vazquez saw several airports were still clearly under water, but a few runways looked like they could be usable within a few days. This was better than he had imagined, he said. | |
| “Today’s flight, what it gave us was huge hope,” he said. “I thought it was going to be weeks, if not months, for the runways to get clear.” | “Today’s flight, what it gave us was huge hope,” he said. “I thought it was going to be weeks, if not months, for the runways to get clear.” |
| Such hope, however, was in short supply Wednesday, as officials warned of an impending health crisis in the days to come. The risk of contaminated water supplies loomed large. | Such hope, however, was in short supply Wednesday, as officials warned of an impending health crisis in the days to come. The risk of contaminated water supplies loomed large. |
| “We have to assume that all of the ground water, all of the community water, is contaminated,” said Duane Sands, the minister of health. | “We have to assume that all of the ground water, all of the community water, is contaminated,” said Duane Sands, the minister of health. |
| In Marsh Harbour the threat was pronounced, especially in the predominantly Haitian shantytown known as The Mudd, which officials have said was demolished by the storm. | In Marsh Harbour the threat was pronounced, especially in the predominantly Haitian shantytown known as The Mudd, which officials have said was demolished by the storm. |
| “We are incredibly concerned about the next phase, which is the risk of diarrheal diseases, the risk of rodents, the risk of mosquitoes, lack of access to proper medical care,” he added. | “We are incredibly concerned about the next phase, which is the risk of diarrheal diseases, the risk of rodents, the risk of mosquitoes, lack of access to proper medical care,” he added. |
| On Grand Bahama island, the water had receded, revealing in its wake widespread decimation. Parts of Freetown were in shambles, and communications were spotty, leaving many to wonder about the fate of relatives and loved ones. | On Grand Bahama island, the water had receded, revealing in its wake widespread decimation. Parts of Freetown were in shambles, and communications were spotty, leaving many to wonder about the fate of relatives and loved ones. |
| Rashema Ingraham, a resident of Freeport and the executive director of Save the Bays, a Bahamian environmental organization, struggled to grasp the extent of the damage. | Rashema Ingraham, a resident of Freeport and the executive director of Save the Bays, a Bahamian environmental organization, struggled to grasp the extent of the damage. |
| “We’re just trying to wrap our minds around the recovery efforts,” she said. “Everybody is pretty much shell shocked at the impact that Dorian has had.” | “We’re just trying to wrap our minds around the recovery efforts,” she said. “Everybody is pretty much shell shocked at the impact that Dorian has had.” |
| She had left her home on Sunday night as the water approached, and after a police officer came to the door to warn her family to leave immediately. The family has been staying with friends who live on higher ground. | She had left her home on Sunday night as the water approached, and after a police officer came to the door to warn her family to leave immediately. The family has been staying with friends who live on higher ground. |
| “We definitely need water and that’s drinking water,” she said. “We need cleaning supplies in terms of garbage bags, gloves, bleach. Foods that are easy to prepare like cereal. | “We definitely need water and that’s drinking water,” she said. “We need cleaning supplies in terms of garbage bags, gloves, bleach. Foods that are easy to prepare like cereal. |
| “Monday was actually supposed to the be the first day of school,” she said, and children who had prepared their school supplies may have lost them all. | “Monday was actually supposed to the be the first day of school,” she said, and children who had prepared their school supplies may have lost them all. |
| Then Ms. Ingraham paused, stunned at the enormity of all the needs. “I don’t know, a lot, it’s a lot,” she said. | Then Ms. Ingraham paused, stunned at the enormity of all the needs. “I don’t know, a lot, it’s a lot,” she said. |
| Much of Freeport was simply paralyzed. The airport was damaged. The harbor area was in the path of the main storm surge on the north of the island, Ms. Ingraham said. | Much of Freeport was simply paralyzed. The airport was damaged. The harbor area was in the path of the main storm surge on the north of the island, Ms. Ingraham said. |
| The only public hospital was damaged and the two main supermarkets, along with their warehouses, were in an area of Freeport that was completely submerged. | The only public hospital was damaged and the two main supermarkets, along with their warehouses, were in an area of Freeport that was completely submerged. |
| The economic paralysis following the storm was another disaster waiting to unfold. | The economic paralysis following the storm was another disaster waiting to unfold. |
| Ms. Sands, who lives in Cherokee Sound in Abaco, said they suffered much less damage in her community than in Marsh Harbour. But she feared mass unemployment in the aftermath of Dorian. | Ms. Sands, who lives in Cherokee Sound in Abaco, said they suffered much less damage in her community than in Marsh Harbour. But she feared mass unemployment in the aftermath of Dorian. |
| “Put it this way, most people that work who are not fishermen, they work in Marsh Harbour,” she said. “And I don’t think there’s a business that could just open up and say they’re in business.” | “Put it this way, most people that work who are not fishermen, they work in Marsh Harbour,” she said. “And I don’t think there’s a business that could just open up and say they’re in business.” |