Community Affairs Consultants

Deadly and destructive Hurricane Dorian is slowly releasing its stationary grip on the Caribbean isles of the Bahamas. In the wake of the hurricane, large swaths of the northern Bahamas have suffered "unprecedented" damage and some areas have been submerged under copious amounts of rainfall and a high and strong storm surge.

For more than 36-hours, the tropical weather system punished the usually sun- drenched vacation isles with winds of 185-miles-per-hour, rainfall measuring in feet and a storm surge that submerged Grand Bahama International Airport under some six-feet-of water.

Media reports of satellite images of the Bahamian damage revealed houses and other structures reduced to colored toothpick-like mounds of rubbish with boats thrown up onto land as large swaths of once-dry remained under water. The leadership of the island group has described the destruction as "unprecedented". Five deaths have been attributed to the storm so far, but that number could increase given the non-surveyed status of the full extent of Dorian and its continuing rains as the system limps northwest away from the Bahamas.

The United States (US) Coast Guard has responded quickly to assist the Bahamas and it is credited thus far with airlifting 21 injured people for medical care in the capital, Nassau, even though some parts that city remain under water. Abaco island and the surrounding islands appear to have taken the brunt of the hurricane-damage. Some 17,000 people inhabit Abaco. 

Head of State Queen Elizabeth II has sent condolences to the people of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas via a statement to her representative Governor General Cornelius Smith. Her Majesty said: "At this very difficult time, my thoughts and prayers are with those who have seen their homes and property destroyed and I also send my gratitude to the emergency services and volunteers, who are supporting the rescue and recovery effort," the BBC-News reported.

While the resilient people of the Bahamas will rebuild and will recover from this massive act of nature, international assistance will surely be needed to contribute toward the recovery efforts of the beloved Bahamas.

Hurricane Dorian - a massive and unpredictable tropical weather system, has been battering the Caribbean isles of the Bahamas for more than 12-hours and it is inflicting "catastrophic" and "unprecedented" damage as a category 5 storm - the highest classification of hurricanes, in the western hemisphere. Winds were measured upward of 185-miles-per-hour causing major flooding and prompting a storm surge of over five-feet in many places.

As we send our thoughts and prayers to the people of the Bahamas, a full assessment of damage remains unavailable because of the continuous pounding from the tropical system and its almost stationary nature.  

Yet, the system will move away from the Bahamas, sooner, rather than later. Dorian has now been slightly downgraded to a category 4 Hurricane. It will set its path toward the United States (US) East Coast, anywhere from Florida to Virginia, but no exact, if any landfall point, has been determined because of the unpredictable nature of the storm. 

From Florida to the Carolinas, preparations are in full swing to survive Hurricane Dorian. Not only is the wind component of the storm very dangerous, but also its rainfall and tidal surge threaten widespread flooding even if the system does not come on shore.

Hurricane Dorian is an example of nature's wrath that serves to humble humankind of the power of the natural environment that is beyond humanity's control. Yet, such systems should act as reminders of the ramifications that are possible from a deteriorating environment characterized by Climate Change that provides more ideal conditions to favor the development of massive storms and other events due to man-made actions.

Stay safe everybody and a speedy recovery to all victims. May God have mercy upon you all. 

The wrath of nature and its untamable power were witnessed in Sunday's night deadly 7.3 magnitude-earthquake along Iran's western border with Iraq.

That 540 people have been killed, 8,000 injured and that 12,000 homes have collapsed sending thousands of people out into freezing temperatures, affirms the magnitude of the Iranian catastrophe.

Yet, as Iran mourns its dead and tends its injured as surviving victims yearn for faster relief, it is the resolve for continuity that will champion the Iranian people over this natural disaster - the said resolve that has enabled the sustaination of life on Planet Earth from prior disasters and conflicts.

The human resolve for continuity has been tested and fractured often. But possessing a strong inclination to live, humankind will continue to rise out of the rubble of buildings fell in earthquakes, over the ashes of conflicts, onto the dry ground away from floods and alee of the gales of hurricanes. Humanity will often find a way to adapt and to cope with tragedies. The wrath of nature must always be equated by humanity's resolve to continuity.

So as our prayers continue for the people of Iran and Iraq that they find relief and comfort from the devastating earthquake, humanity is hereby reminded that all inhabitants, on Planet Earth, are susceptible today or tomorrow to the wrath of nature with the understanding that that which has effected a distant people yesterday, could very likely affect a close friend today, or oneself tomorrow. 

Three-days of mourning have been declared across Iran for the 395 dead victims of last night's powerful 7.3 earthquake that struck about 9:19 p.m. Iranian time, around the western border and the northeastern border of Iraq. Another 6,650 people, thus far, have been counted as being injured in the natural disaster.

Most of the Iranian deaths and injuries were reported in the western province of Kermanshah close to the Iraq border, where another seven people were killed and many others injured in the Kurdish region of Iraq, along the Iranian border. 

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has sent condolences to the victims and he has called upon the military and civilians to assist victims, CNN reported.

Last night's earthquake, with an epicenter along the Iran-Iraq border at a depth of some 14-miles underground, according to the United States(US) Geological Survey, has surpassed Mexico City's earthquake in September to become the most deadly seismic event thus far in 2017. Deaths in the Mexico City quake numbered 369 compared to last night's toll, so far, of 402 in Iran and in Iraq.

Iran is prone to earthquakes since it lies atop a major fault line of the Arabian(Persian) and Eurasian tectonic plates. The former plate is overriding the lower plate that gives Iran its mountainous geological character. 

Recent major earthquakes in Iran include a 6.4 event in February 2005 in Kerman province that killed some 400; a December 2003 tragedy that killed 26,000 people and destroyed the historic city of Bam in the south; and the June 1990 disaster that killed 40,000 people in the northern province Gilan, the BBC-News reported.

Our condolences and prayers go out to the people of Iran and Iraq as we call upon international relief agencies and kind governments to render all services needed to the Iranian people.

Hurricane Irma - the powerful shifting tropical storm that has forced more than 76,000 residents in Florida into emergency shelters, has arrived on the United States(US) mainland.

The storm came ashore in the Florida Keys earlier this morning packing winds in excess of 130-miles-an-hour. Though a weakened system, the storm still remains very dangerous causing major flooding, storm surges and power outages to more than 300,000 residences.

Crossing the Florida keys and tracking just west of the Florida peninsula, Irma will continue to impact the state when it re-traverses the state around St. Petersburg with high winds, a high storm surge and flooding on both west and east coasts.

As the system weakens as it continues to head inland, the aftermath of the natural event will be felt for a very long time with flooded streets, down power lines and trees. Clean up will not be an easy process as those of us who experienced Hurricane Andrew 25-years-ago, well know.

We continue to urge the greatest caution for all residents.

Massive Hurricane Irma packing winds of over 150-miles-per-hour is nearing the United States(US) mainland. Safeguard your persons and loved ones. Property is replaceable, life is not.

From the Florida Keys, to Miami, to Fort Myers, to Naples, to Punta Gorda, to Tampa, to Orlando and beyond, Floridians need to take shelter forthwith. Be safe.

May Almighty God grant relief and comfort to the victims of Hurricane Irma, especially to those on Barbuda and on other islands swept by this weather phenomenon packing winds in excess of 180-miles per hour. 

May the survivors find solace in the light of the sun in the aftermath of this act of nature that would allow for a quick recovery and rebuilding efforts.

May those who died travel well knowing that their deaths may not be in vain, but serve as living-guides toward better building codes and greater pre-storm considerations. Amen.  

At least 254 people have died, another 400 injured and 200, including a number of children, are missing after copious amounts of rain on Friday, triggered a watery-mudslide yesterday of muck and boulders upon the city of Mocoa, in the South American nation of Colombia.

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos has declared a state of emergency in the region after touring the devastated area, in the southwest of the country, close to the Ecuadorian and Peruvian borders. Relief workers have been joined by more than 1,000 troops and police in carrying out rescue assistance and heartbreaking recovery operations. 

Prayers have been offered for the Colombia people as they cope with the natural disaster. At least three large temporary housing shelters have been erected to house the displaced.

According to the BBC-News, Colombia's National Disaster Risk Management Unit confirmed that a third of the region's expected monthly rainfall, fell during one night. The rain swelled rivers causing them to break their banks causing the horrendous mudslide. "It was a torrential rainstorm, it got really strong," local resident Mario Usale, whose father-in-law was missing, told Reuters.

Mocoa mayor, Jose Antonio Castro, said his city was "totally isolated" without running water and electricity because the devastation was blocking access routes. 

This is the rainy season for many places close to the equator, especially in Colombia, Peru and Ecuador. Heavy rains that maintain some of the dense plush jungles and rain forests in the region, can have disastrous effects over large areas. Our condolences to the bereaved and our hopes to a speedy recovery in Mocoa.   

The devastation left by last week's Hurricane Matthew along a battered path from the Caribbean islands to the United States(US) mainland has now ushered in broad rescue, relief and aid operations from Haiti to the coasts of the Carolinas.

Haiti -  the hardest hit area in the storm, suffered catastrophic deaths numbering over 900 thus far, widespread property damage to hundreds of homes and a growing health scare from the disease, cholera, which had already killed 10,000 and infected 800,000 in the country since 2010. 

Jocerlerme Privert, Haiti's interim president, told the BBC-News that Hurricane Matthew left destruction on any apocalyptic scale, while the United nations(UN) disclosed that a "massive response" to recovery was needed because of fear of famine in the next few months in Haiti. 

International aid has started entering Haiti from USAID, private and NGO groups, including two players for the Washington Redskins American Football team - Pierre Garcon and Ricky Jean Francois, who are of Haitian descent, who took a plane full of medical supplies on Sunday, NBC4 Washington, DC, reported.

In the southeastern states of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina, 30 people died in Hurricane Matthew. Electrical power has been restored to many homes, though thousands remain in the dark. However, in the Carolinas, a lingering threat remains to be flooding as some rivers continue to rise. Yet, full recovery and relief efforts are in place to normalize affected areas following the Hurricane Matthew.

Hurricane Matthew tore across Haiti on Wednesday killing an estimated 478 people as it skirts the east coast of Florida this morning. 

Though the Atlantic storm remains a powerful and dangerous hurricane with winds of 105 miles-per-hour off the Florida coast, the depth of its wrath must have peaked earlier over Haiti, when winds were in excess of 120-miles-per-hour. While flooding, power-outages and down trees might be the most common effects of the storm on the United States(US) mainland, destruction is not expected to eclipse the damage in Haiti.

Entire towns have been battered on Haiti, where 80 percent of the structures in the town of Jeremie have been destroyed along with wood-splintering damage in the towns of Corail and Petit-Goave, where a major bridge was washed away isolating southern Haiti from the rest of the nation.  The 478 deaths thus far reported by Reuters, quoting local officials, confirm the stark correlation between poverty and a high number of deaths during natural disaster events. Haiti has a GDP per capita of $1,800 compared to $15,000 for its neighbor, the Dominican Republic, according to 2015 figures published by the CIA World Fact Book.

Haiti - a nation rich with cultural history, has been economically impoverish for centuries and the blame for such has fallen upon successions of poor governments and leaderships, who have been known to pilfer the country's wealth. 

Moreover, Haiti's unfortunate condition in 2016 has also come to wrought by a devastating earthquake on January 12, 2010, which killed some 316,000 people and wrecked billions of dollars worth in damage across the nation. 

Today, 350,000 people are in need of assistance following the destruction from Hurricane Matthew and 61,500 people are in shelters following a preliminary assessment of storm damage. Unfortunately, more casualties and damages could possibly be found on Haiti as international relief efforts reach rural and cut off regions of the nation. Whatever else, Haiti's woes will remain for a long time.