Hurricane Dorian wreaks havoc up the Atlantic

As the tropical storm weakens it leaves behind a path of destruction.

By Aimee Martinez, Valley Life Editor

Nova Scotia, one of Canada’s three Maritime provinces, is the last victim of Hurricane Dorian as it weakened into a post tropical cyclone.

With “flooding, uprooted trees, broken poles and downed power lines,'' according to Nova Scotia Power Inc., over 400,000 of their customers are experiencing power outages across the province. 

For 48 hours, Category 5 winds propelled Hurricane Dorian through Great Abaco and Grand Bahama islands leaving destruction in its wake. Reports by the Washington Post say there are 50 confirmed deaths with the number expected to rise. According to the U.N., Hurricane Dorian has left approximately 70,000 people homeless in the Bahamas. 

The class five tropical storm is the strongest Caribbean hurricane on record. According to the Bahamian Deputy Prime Minister Kevin Peter Turnquest, the destruction could cost “hundreds of millions, if not billions.”

“It will take a long time to rebuild,” said Bahamian Prime Minister Hubert Minnis in an NPR interview. “But be assured that we're a resilient nation, and we will build our country back even stronger.”

Currently, the entire island of Grand Bahama has little to no water, power or sanitation. The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) stated that there were high risks of diarrhea and waterborne diseases due to sewage contamination, polluted flood waters, and lack of safe water. 

According to Reuters, many relief organizations have deployed their services and resources to give aid to the victims. The U.S. Coast Guard and Navy have shipped relief supplies and rescued at least 290 people from isolated areas of the island.

The tropical cyclone then landed on the coasts of Florida and Georgia, hitting them with intense tropical storm winds and rains as Hurricane Dorian headed to the Carolinas. CBS reported that dozens of bricks of cocaine were washed up ashore Florida beaches in the aftermath. 

By the time Hurricane Dorian hit the outer banks of North Carolina, it was a Category 1. With winds up to 90 mph, some of the homes and trees of Ocracoke Island have been damaged. 

In a New York Times interview, many North Carolina residents expressed their grievances of being hit by another storm just after recovering from Hurricane Florence. So far, at least two people have died, as confirmed by North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper.

In a last advisory Sunday night the NHC reported Hurricane Dorian had become fully extratropical as it moved over the Labrador Sea and away from Atlantic Canada. 

“Swells along the mid-Atlantic and New England coasts of the U.S. will continue for another day or so,” reported the NHC. “These swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.”