By Annelia Nixon

anixon@tribunemedia.net

WITH what meteorologists have termed “an active hurricane season”, residents, hardware stores and hurricane shelters have been gearing up in preparation for any possible weather disturbances.

Chief meteorologist Mary Butler, told Tribune Business that The Bahamas lies in the hurricane belt. She said this means meteorologists expect at least two or three storms to hit The Bahamas during hurricane season. She added that Dorian was the first hurricane in history to sit over any Bahamian island for 48 hours and since it happened once it can happen again.

“Having a cat [category] five at any time of any year moving forward is evident,” Mrs Butler said. “We can possibly have one. We have had cat [category] fives before. That’s nothing new to us but the impacts from Dorian was such that at that time, Dorian, unlike any other storms or cat [category] fives we’ve experienced before, remained in our area for 48 hours. Which made it very destructive for us. In the past with cat [category] fives they would come into our area but they move very quickly out so the impact has not been that devastating for us like Dorian.”

Residents of Grand Bahama, since experiencing catastrophic hurricane Dorian five years ago, seem to have begun early preparations for the season, according to the general manager of Dolly Madison Home Centre, James Rolle. He said the store has experienced an increase in sales even before the hurricane season began, noting that hurricane supplies were the items being bought in high quantities.

“From a business point of view and my observation, I’ve realised that the residents of Grand Bahama in particular are very cognizant of the dangers of storms,” Mr Rolle said. “Because of experiencing Dorian, I have seen the exercise of awareness from our customers in terms of purchasing hurricane supplies. One of the things I have noticed is that, even prior to the hurricane season, persons were picking up items that were generic to hurricane preparedness and it continues to go on. Persons have been securing on a more convenient basis instead of waiting until a storm becomes more eminent and the rush is on to purchase all those things in bulk.”

Mr Rolle said customers are purchasing batteries in bulk, portable stoves, portable gas, candles, matches and other hurricane essential items. He also mentioned customers purchasing cutlasses and chain saws so they can prepare their yards for a possible storm. Although Dolly Madison Home Center also sells generators, he said he has not seen an increase in sales in them.

“Sales on generators is slow,” he stated. “I think what has happened is, during the aftermath of Dorian, a lot of generators were actually given away. So, a lot of residents would have probably benefited from the free generators and so there really isn’t a rush for persons to go out there and buy generators.”

Currently, forecasters are tracking tropical storm Ernesto, which chief meteorologist Orson Nixon said is expected to pass to the east of the southeast Bahamas the night of August 14 through the morning of the 15th.

“The current models have the system passing to the east of the southeast Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands on Wednesday night through Thursday morning,” Mr Nixon explained. “We don't expect any significant direct impacts at the moment. However, we do expect with definite certainty indirect impacts, such as swells, affecting the Southeast Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands as the system moves past our islands.”

Mr Nixon said he does not expect the storm to bring catastrophic damage to The Bahamas.

“As the system reaches North of Puerto Rico, and starts that northward track, it will contribute to some enhancement in shower and thunderstorm activity but not to a sever extent,” Mr Nixon said. “But there will be a brief period where we have an increase in activities across the South East Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands. We do expect it to strengthen into a hurricane by early Wednesday and this will be on the lower end of the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane scale.”

Although models show Tropical Storm Ernesto traveling east of the southeast Bahamas, Mr Nixon called storms “unpredictable” and said it could change directions at any time. He said, for this reason, he urges residents that, “any time a system is coming close to their vicinity, they should prepare as if that system will pass over them.” According to the chairman and the past president of the Betsy Bay Social Club in Mayaguana, Mario Murphy, that is exactly what residents on the island are doing.

With Mayaguana being one of the islands in the southeast chain, he said he is keeping an eye on the storm. He added that the Betsy Bay Community Center, which the organisation oversees, has been utilized as a Hurricane Shelter for ten or more years and that it is the strongest structure on the island. He said that this year would be no different.

“We are a nonprofit organisation so we have limited resources,” Mr. Murphy said. “We do our best to maintain it.”

He said the shelter has a full kitchen, a drink cooler, restrooms, ductless AC units and he mentioned that NEMA has installed a backup generator at the center. He said the shelter will be open to those who need it, noting that there aren't many other options if a resident lives in the Betsy Bay area.

“We are in the middle of nowhere and we only have two flights a week. Bahamasair comes here twice a week so you don’t have much options - Monday or Friday,” Mr Murphy said. “So when it comes to the storm, either you have to wait it out in your house or come to the shelter.”

Mr Murphy said he is waiting on both NEMA and Social service to help with donating supplies for the shelter. He said they normally do so when a storm is traveling.

With the hurricane season in full effect, a representative of Storm Frame Windows and Doors Ltd, Henry Lightbourne, is urging Bahamians to be prepared. Mr Lightbourne said business is picking up and the store is receiving many inquiries about its services, including its hurricane-impact windows collection.

“We’re getting a number of calls asking if we have windows,” Mr Lightbourne said. “We have taken a very aggressive approach to the market although sometimes we run up against a lot of headwinds. There are people calling us from all over The Bahamas from as far south as Inagua, to as far north as Abaco and Grand Bahama and all points in between. So business is healthy.”