Bahamian Natives in St. Cloud Talk About Hurricane Destruction

ST. CLOUD -- A few students at St. Cloud State University continue to watch from afar as their home country of the Bahamas cleans up from Hurricane Dorian.

Sam Johnson attends SCSU along with his wife and son. He has two daughters that still live in the Bahamas, one on Abaco Island and the other on Grand Bahama Island - the two hit the hardest.

He says he was able to talk to them before and even during the storm.

While the hurricane was still on them we were still able to communicate.  One of my daughters was telling me the water was coming in.  That was terrifying, I felt hopeless and helpless.

Johnson says both of his daughters are safe and are staying with relatives, however, both of their homes are destroyed.

He says he's heard that their home on Grand Bahama Island had seven feet of water in it and has been destroyed. But, he's encouraged by the progress that has been made in the past week.

Some parts of the island are being electrified and water is being restored, but areas like where our home is and other letters that were flooded they are flagged that they won't be able to be electrified for a long time.  There are a lot of residents who are basically homeless.

Johnson says officials are not allowing residents to return to the most devastated areas yet.

At least 50 people from the Bahamas died from Hurricane Dorian and that number is expected to increase significantly.

A preliminary report estimates Dorian caused at least $7 billion in damage.

Meanwhile, forecasters say a tropical storm warning remains in effect for several northwestern islands in the Bahamas as a tropical disturbance is slowly moving over the country.

How can you help the Bahamas recover from Hurricane Dorian? Go on vacation there. That is the advice of a Bahamian native who is currently attending St. Cloud State University.

The Bahamas is not closed, it's just the two northern islands that may be down for a while, but the capital and all of the islands south of it are open for business, so why not this winter take a vacation there and you'll help the economy and get a vacation of a lifetime.