A few hours before the arrival of Hurricane Dorian, residents of the Bahamas were still preparing to face the Category 4 monster on Saturday, especially in the northernmost portion of the archipelago.
"It's a last minute, it seems as long as there is no wind blowing people do not act very quickly," said Pierre Tetreault, a Quebecer living in the Bahamas.
A calm that can be explained, according to him, by the recurrence of major meteorological phenomena.
"Every four years, we have hurricanes, so it's part of [our] daily," he says.
Race against the clock to move 30 sailboats
A sailboat captain is preparing for the worst by protecting the fleet of thirty hired catamarans for which he is responsible before Hurricane Dorian hits the Bahamas.
"At this moment, it's total calm, there's no wind, it's sunny. But I'm very stressed, "Alexis Paldino Claudio told TVA Nouvelles from his boat on Saturday.
For the past few days, many of his crew and he has been working to protect the property of Dream Yacht Charter, a company that rents luxury catamarans in the Bahamas.
The boats are normally moored at Marsh Harbor, on the islands of Abucos. But the atoll is directly in the devastating trajectory of Dorian, which explains why Alexis Claudio raced against the clock to move the 30 catamarans to Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas, which is located on an island that will be less severely tested. by the hurricane.
"All the people of Marsh Harbor are gone, because it's going to be a disaster," he said.
Once at their destination, the sailors had to dismount the sails, including the large sails, and remove everything that was outside the boats.
Moreover, as it would be too dangerous to sleep in the boats, the captain has reserved hotel rooms far from the coast for the entire crew. The sailors will still have to check the condition of the boats in the night from Saturday to Sunday, when the hurricane will take strength.
"If we can go out, we'll go, but if it's too dangerous, we'll only be able to look at it," said the man.
"It's a lot of money, 30 boats. I'm afraid. We did the maximum. After that, it's destiny, "he added.
The strongest of Hurricane Dorian, with winds of 240 km / h, is expected in the Bahamas Sunday morning.
After the Bahamas, it is Florida that has to taste the velocity of Dorian, but to a lesser extent than estimated, the trajectory of the hurricane has changed in recent hours according to the models. It is rather Georgia and Carolina who are now at risk of the storm.
Never mind, the biometeorologist Gilles Brien believes that Florida will still be hit hard, which means that many Quebecers who live there will likely experience difficult times.
"Over the next few days, the hurricane will continue to be a major category. That worries a lot of people.
"There's good news: if you do not hit Florida hard, there are a lot of people out there who are going to be relieved. The strongest rain, 300 to 400 millimeters, is going to stand a little bit off the coast. But anyway, Florida will surely get 200 millimeters of rain and very strong winds. "
Other testimonials
"The houses could be completely submerged. Homes and structures can be replaced, but not lives, "said Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Minnis.
"I was anticipating something much bigger and bigger than Andrew had been. It was very stressful, finally the relief, "said Richard Clavet, owner of Richard's Motel.
"There is always a risk of secondary wind damage," said Christian Lavoie, a Quebecker living in Florida.
"A change of direction can have a lot of impact," said Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida.
Source link
https://www.journaldequebec.com/2019/08/31/louragan-dorian-eviterait-la-floride-et-se-dirigerait-plus-au-nord
