x
Breaking News
More () »

Donations for Dorian: DC community members pack supplies for those impacted by hurricane

Donations were collected from the Bahamian consulate and embassy

WASHINGTON — Much needed supplies are leaving Washington D.C. Saturday and heading to the Bahamas to help those affected by Hurricane Dorian.

The Bahamian Prime Minister says much of the Abaco island is decimated and no longer exists, leaving many people with nothing.

“Things are bad,” Leah Malcom Skrine said. Her family lives in the Bahamas. “I think it’s hard to put into words and for people to grasp the gravity of how bad things are. Most people don’t have electric, most people don’t have running water and 70,000 people have been displaced.”

Bahamian Prime Minister Hubert Minnis said much of the island of Abaco is decimated and no longer exists.

Credit: WUSA
Leah Malcom Skrine has family in the Bahamas. She helped load the supplies that will help people hard hit in her home country.

RELATED: DC community stepping up to help those devastated by Dorian

Since the hurricane hit, the Bahamian embassy and consulate have been accepting donations from across the D.C. area. On Saturday the supplies were loaded into trucks that will now be transported onto a cruise ship that has offered to deliver the supplies.

“There has truly been an outpouring of love,” Skrine said. “We have a 26-foot truck fully loaded and we have another 16-footer being loaded and I think they have two more truckloads of supplies.”

Credit: WUSA
Dozens of volunteers loaded boxes into the trucks that would take the supplies to a cruise ship bound for the Bahamas.

RELATED: These images show the sobering devastation Hurricane Dorian left on the Bahamas

Skrine said this is will help with the basics, but there is still a long way to go.

“This isn’t something that can be fixed with a bottle of beach this is going to take quite some time and the other things is a large percent of the businesses have been impacted which means not only have you lost your home, you’ve lost your source of income and the ability to repair your home,” Skrine said.

Before You Leave, Check This Out