Community Affairs Consultants

After plowing its way through the eastern Caribbean from Barbados to Dominica; dumping copious amounts of rain on Jamaica and on Cuba and leveling major devastation upon Haiti, Hurricane Matthew - a dangerous Atlantic Ocean Hurricane, is churning up the surf and blowing destructive winds upon the paradise beaches of the Bahamas, this morning, with an eye to reaching the United States(US) mainland, in Florida, on Friday morning.

Hurricane Matthew has already claimed some 15 lives along its path through the Caribbean while wrecking havoc and additional hardships upon the people of Haiti, as towns, sparse possessions and lives were either washed or blown away in the tropical weather system. 

Nassau, in the Bahamas, is now under the full brunt of the storm, which is packing winds of 125 miles-per-hour, as a category 3 hurricane. Authorities warn that the storm could further strengthen to a category 4 with winds around 145 miles-per-hour when it makes landfall on the US mainland, anywhere from Palm Beach, to the Space Coast, to Jacksonville, Florida, early on Friday.

Florida's governor, Rick Scott, offered the following stark reality to residents:"...this storm will kill you." Florida, Georgia and South Carolina have called for the mandatory evacuations of some two million people from along the eastern coast line.

As USAID and other emergency relief organizations look to implement aid operations in Haiti and other places throughout the Caribbean, the Federal Emergency Management Agency(FEMA) in the US, stands on alert and ready to distribute aid based upon Hurricane Matthew's impact on the US mainland. 

Residents should evacuate threatened coastal areas forthwith. Inland residents should stock up on emergency supplies including non-perishable foods and water.