The Tribune

By LAMECH JOHNSON

Tribune Staff Reporter

ljohnson@tribunemedia.net

HURRICANE Matthew’s devastation to the Bahamas has been as mentally and emotionally taxing on affected residents as it has been on their loved ones living abroad.

Kachelle Knowles, a Bahamian artist enrolled at the Emily Carr University of Art and Design in Vancouver, British Columbia said she was glad that precautions were taken this year so that there were no casualties from the storm.

When she first learned of Matthew’s projected path towards the Bahamas, she immediately made contact with her relatives in Nassau who were thousands of miles away from her in Canada.

“My mom updated me telling me who was staying with whom,” she said.

“After the storm, I knew power was out for a lot of people so getting in contact with my family and friends was difficult. Our house in Nassau made it okay but I have family members living in Andros that apparently suffered more than Nassau did. It’s extremely stressful not being able to confirm if anyone is okay and being rendered so helpless because I’m so far away.

“It’s also difficult not knowing what news to believe on social media but I had no other way of updating myself. And being in school, it’s unfortunate seeing all of that because you must find a balance between focusing on your studies and not becoming overwhelmed with matters back at home.”

Matthew pummelled New Providence on Thursday, damaging homes and businesses, uprooting trees and snapping power lines. Many have been without power and running water since last Wednesday, as utility providers work to restore normalcy.

North Andros “took the brunt” of the eye of Hurricane Matthew on Thursday evening, residents said, causing extensive flooding from Morgan’s Bluff Marina all the way into Pineville, and from Lowe Sound Harbour into Fire Road.

The BTC tower was completely destroyed in the storm, cutting off all telephone communications. On Friday afternoon, volunteers in heavy trucks were out trying to clear large trees that were blocking the roads. Potable water and electrical infrastructure were also affected.

Reports were much better from the southern and central parts of the island.

Meanwhile in Grand Bahama, the storm damaged more than 90 per cent of the buildings in the Eight Mile Rock and Holmes Rock areas.

A senior police officer told The Tribune on Friday that more than 72 homes reported experiencing significant roof damage from Matthew although that did not include the western area of the island, which also experienced severe destruction.

Ms Knowles said she hasn’t been “fully updated with my family recently, especially those in Andros, so I cannot say how optimistic they are about recovering from this.”

“Most of my friends in Nassau seem to have braved the storm fine so I’m hoping. 2016 has not been the best year so I’m hoping Bahamians will truly support one another to get through these difficult times.”

Rogert Wright, a recent graduate from Northern Caribbean University who then moved to Lyon, France to learn French, said it took nearly two days to make contact with relatives in Freeport, Grand Bahama.

“It was nerve-wracking wondering if my folks were okay,” Mr Wright said.

“It brought back past memories because I remembered the conditions of Freeport after Hurricanes Jeanne and Frances devastated Grand Bahama in September 2004. I felt nervous because of all the media coverage about the storm and all the posts on social media.”

“The news said Matthew was going to be worse and the fact that it was so unpredictable really frightened me the most because the meteorologists were conflicted about its direction and Matthew was also transitioning from different categories quickly,” he said.

“My mom’s place was okay. There was no major damage I was told of other than a few trees being blown down. As for my stepfather’s mom, her entire house collapsed. It’s one of those old wooden houses and was located in one of those areas they requested the islanders to evacuate.

“We knew it wouldn’t be able to stand against a hurricane of that magnitude but it’s still sad,” Mr Wright said.

“I’ve heard people are coming together to fix things and begin the rebuilding process so I believe that with time, we will do more than just recover from this,” he said.

Patrick Touissant, who was recruited as an English teaching assistant by the French Ministry of Education to work in Dijon, France, said he felt “helpless” being several thousand miles away from home while his family braved the storm in the capital.

“It took me about three days to finally get in contact with my family,” Mr Touissant told The Tribune.

“They sustained a lot of damage to the roof. The ceiling came down and so that will have to be redone. It felt horrible being away and a part of me wish I was there to help out. I felt helpless and often found myself neglecting what I needed to do here in Dijon thinking about them,” he added.

“But they’re safe and grateful to be alive. To them, it could’ve been worse and so I feel much better now knowing they are safe,” the teaching aide said.

While not giving an exact figure, Prime Minister Perry Christie has suggested that it will cost the country hundreds of millions to repair the storm damage.