Grand Bahama in the Wake of Hurricane Dorian

The Sand Bar After the Storm

by Georges Fery

My earlier story about “The Grand Bahama Sand Bar” in Freeport, Grand Bahama, described a great and friendly place where people from near and far met for a good time; the place where “one can’t tell where the beach stops and the floor begins.” Life, however, sometimes take unexpected turns, and that is what happened when nature unfolded its wrath upon the island on September 1-3, 2019. This story is about the tragic consequences of the disastrous Hurricane Dorian and the hardship islanders had to endure and overcome. We know that hurricanes are the curse of the Caribbean islands, and their visits a source of anxiety and destruction. In spite of such unpredictable events Caribbean people, and most of all Bahamians, resolutely stand up to the wrath of nature and adversity.

A common feature to cultures is a place in the community where friends and neighbors meet. That is where through laughs or tears, they unravel the hardships of the day and celebrate its joys. The Sand Bar (photo at top) is one of those places.  Opened in the 1990s by Delon Jenkins “Jenks” Knowles and his charming wife Valerie, it’s tucked away on Mather Town Beach. The place is replete with artworks from local artists. Best of all, you never know who you might meet there, and patrons look forward to meeting friends and making new ones, whether they live in town or are just passing through. What matters really, is the moment; isn’t what life is all about? The island of Grand Bahama is indeed blessed with beautiful beaches and turqoise waters. NASA Astronaut Scott Kelly rightfully called the Bahamas “the most beautiful place from space, with dazzling white sand beaches surrounded by an incredible palette of deep blue and turquoise water; this tropical paradise sure stands out.” He might have added, for divers, that the islands of the Bahamas boast the third largest barrier reef in the world.

Bahamians were heart broken after Hurricane Dorian made landfall on September 1, 2019, the strongest Category-5 storm in Bahamas’ history, with winds peaking at 185-mph on Great Abaco. The hurricane became the most intense tropical cyclone on record to strike the Bahamas. It is tied for strongest landfall in the Atlantic basin. It is also regarded as the worst natural disaster in the Bahamas’ recorded history. Dorian ravaged the island, hovering over Great Abaco and Grand Bahama for thirty six hours, causing flooding, mass destruction and claiming dozens of lives. Ninety-five percent of the houses in McLean’s on the East End townships of Grand Bahama were destroyed; only five of them could be rebuilt. The hurricane eventually pulled away from the islands after three days, on September 3.

The historical record tell us that tropical cyclones moving west from the African continent have, for centuries, wreacked havock in the Caribbean islands straddling the Tropic of Cancer. The first record of a powerful hurricane near the island of Hispaniola appears in Christopher Columbus’ log of 1495. A hurricane in 1559 wrecked a Spanish fleet of 74 ships that had been sent to recapture Florida. Most of the fleet sank, but one ship survived; its crew founded a colony near Pensacola. The Great Hurricane of Oct. 10-16, 1780, also known as Huracán San Calixto, claimed an estimated 22,000 lives in the Lesser Antilles. It destroyed the British and French fleets and remains the deadliest hurricane in recorded history. On Sept. 13, 1999, Hurricane Floyd, a Category-4 with winds of 171-mph, made landfall in the Bahamas and severely damaged Eleuthera and Great Abaco islands. Dorian’s devastation, however, ranks at the top of the destructive roster.

Three years later, the memory of the hurricane still lingers painfully in people’s hearts and will likely remain forever in the minds of those who lived through it. The loss of lives and homes was horrendous. Although the number of dead is still uncertain, the Bahamas Police Commissioner stated in December 2019 that the final toll of lives lost to Dorian will likely never be known. The courage of those that went out into the storm to rescue stranded families in danger of drowning or wounded by debris of wrecked houses will forever be remembered. Neighbors near and far came to help, including 120 Jamaican security personnel from Jamaica and 100 troops from Trinidad and Tobago. The gallant crews of the U.S. Coast Guard’s helicopters and ships worked ceaselessly in the storm’s aftermath. Nor will the generosity of so many people near and far will be forgotten, for Dorian left scars that may never heal.

But Dorian could not drown the Bahamian spirit nor the appeal of their beautiful islands to visitors. Once Dorian moved out, and in spite of an island-wide power outage, came the task of repairing and cleaning. Major public infrastructures projects are still on the “to do” list, such as the Grand Bahama International Airport in Freeport, which was wholly submerged by the storm,   as was Marsh Harbor Airport on Abaco Island. The harshness of the storm and the destruction that followed were extensive, especially to homes and businesses located on the East End townships of Grand Bahama.

Dorian knocked at the Sand Bar’s door but could not force its way in. It only scared the army of liquor bottles tingling on the shelves, and the works of art swinging from the rafters. There was roof damage and flooding, of course but the Sand Bar owner Valerie Knowles stood up to the howls of the storm. What better answer to adversity than to stand firm and howl back? With the help of its dedicated staff who did an amazing job, together with friends and months of sawing, nailing and cleaning, the job of repairing the bar and the gazebos was done. It was then time for a celebration at the bar, of course! The patrons were thrilled to find that their favorite place had stood up to Dorian’s wrath. They were (almost) back to the good old days, drowning their tears in Bahama Mama, Havana Club and other feel-good libations. Friendship was even more palpable for they all had feared and overcome together, the only grace the storm left behind.

Valerie, like the Yellow Elder – the national flower endemic of the Bahamas, which bends but does not break – stood up to adversity. In her own words “I am still very emotional when hearing or thinking about Dorian. The consequences of this storm have been so severe, with the loss of lives and homes. And the rebuilding is still going on, three years later. So many heroes who went out into the storm to rescue families stranded and in such danger due to the unprecedented flooding. Such brave young men, were simply the best!” Sadly, she added “on May 31, 2021, her husband of forty years, Delon “Jenks” succumbed to his fight with cancer. He was the inspiration and founder of the Sand Bar she said, for he “had the foresight to create this special little oasis.” Through the hurricane, followed by the loss of her beloved Jenks, Valerie overcame the impossible.

References and News Outlets:

The Tribune, Nassau – tribune242.com
NOAA-National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration – noaa.gov
The Miami Herald – miamiherald.com
Bahamas Local – http://bahamaslocal.com
NBC News – nbcnews.com
Reliefweb – reliefweb.com
CBS News – cbsnews.com
Orlando Sentinel – orlandosentinel.com
USAID – usaid.gov
The Guardian – theguardian.com

About the author:
Freelance writer, researcher and photographer, addresses topics on the history, culture, and beliefs to daily living of ancient and today’s communities of the Americas. His articles are published online at travelthruhistory.com, ancient-origins.net and popular-archaeology.com, as well as in the quarterly magazine Ancient American (ancientamerican.com); in the U.K. the articles are found in mexicolore.co.uk. The author is a fellow of the Institute of Maya Studies instituteofmayastudies.org. Miami, FL and The Royal Geographical Society, London, U.K. rgs.org. As well as member in good standing of the Maya Exploration Center, Austin, TX mayaexploration.org, the Archaeological Institute of America, Boston, MA archaeological.org, the National Museum of the American Indian, Washington, DC. americanindian.si.edu, and the NFAA – Non-Fiction Authors Association nonfictionauthrosassociation.com. Contact: Georges Fery – 5200 Keller Springs Road, Apt. 1511, Dallas, Texas 75248, (786) 501 9692 – gfery.43@gmail.com and www.georgefery.com