U.S. Coast Guard responds to Bahamas after Hurricane Dorian

I am sure that most of you know that Hurricane Dorian hit the Bahamas last weekend as a category 5 hurricane with winds up to 185 miles per hour. Dorian stalled over parts of the Bahamas for at least a day and a half before making its way up the east coast.

My purpose here and perhaps in subsequent posts on the devastation to the Bahamas from Hurricane Dorian is to focus on the use aviation assets to respond to the Bahamas. Yesterday )September 5th) while I was doing some errands, I heard an interview on NPR with Coast Guard Vice Adm. Scott Buschman about the Coast Guard's response in the Bahamas. I was not able to hear the entire interview, but I did find a link to a segment on NPR's All Things Considered, Thursday September 5th. I am embedding a link to this segment below. For those who prefer to go directly to the NPR All Things Considered Segment that may be found here.

According to Vice Admiral Buschman,

we have eight helicopters flying from the Coast Guard, two flying from the DEA, two flying from Customs and Border Protection. We also have a number of fixed-wing aircraft that were doing some aerial reconnaissance to see what the impacted areas look like. And as of today, we actually have three Coast Guard ships there. They're helping out. They're serving as support cutters for our aircraft so the aircraft can land there and fuel. And they're doing a number of things. They're sending their boats ashore to do some assessments from land.

In the video that I embedded below (here is a direct link to the video from DVIDS), you will hear Petty Officer 3rd Class Jhonkirc, member assisting in the Hurricane Dorian relief efforts being interviewed about thee actual situation on the Abaco area Sept. 5, 2019. The Coast Guard is supporting the Bahamian National Emergency Management Agency and the Royal Bahamian Defense Force, who are leading search and rescue efforts in the Bahamas. The video is by Seaman Erik Villa Rodriguez.



In the next video you will see a Coast Guard crew being welcomed home at Air Station Clearwater. This crew was the first Coast Guard crew to be deployed to the Bahamas to aid in disaster relief in the Bahamas. Video by Petty Officer 2nd Class David Micallef. Go here for the direct link to the video from DVIDS


Finally, I am sharing a brief video report from ABC News about disaster relief in the Bahamas. ABC News sent a reporter and cameraperson who rode along on a flight by Trinity Air Ambulance to Freeport, Grand Bahama. You will see some footage from the first video.


Direct link to video from ABC News