Tropical Depression Nine formed near the Bahamas on Friday and is forecast to become a tropical storm on Saturday, the National Hurricane Center said in its 5 p.m. ET Friday advisory. The Bahamas government issued a tropical storm warning for its northwestern islands — that’s the same area decimated by Hurricane Dorian earlier this month.
The storm was about 240 miles east-southeast of Freeport, Grand Bahama Island, and about 140 miles east-southeast of Great Abaco Island, the hurricane center said. Tropical Depression Nine has maximum sustained winds of 30 mph and is moving northwest at 8 mph.
A group organized by retired Navy Seals and the conservation group the Sea Shepherd has been loading up supplies to send to remote islands that may be impacted by the approaching storm. When CBS News caught up with them, the group had four tons of essentials — food, water and generators — it had loaded onto a ship.
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Residents are doing whatever they can to prepare. With few boats intact, locals are shuttling them to the few dozen people who remain. “I mean, we really don’t need another hurricane. As you can see, we don’t need another one. But we just have to prepare,” Sinetra Higgs told CBS News.
Hurricane Dorian devastated the northern Bahamas. Entire neighborhoods were flattened, homes shredded, shipping containers and boats hurled inland. Some airports were submerged, while terminals were covered in debris.
Some residents remain frustrated at the government’s response, especially with another storm on the way. Many residents said that the only assistance they’ve gotten came from foreigners — and that they’re still living without cell service, power, and running water.
The Bahamian government said it’s coordinating relief efforts from Nassau. But since most of the field teams come from private foreign aid groups, that’s all the residents in hard-hit communities see.
Errol Barnett contributed to this report.
