AND NOW FOR NEWS ON HURRICANE MATTHEW

The photos depict hurricane damage in Freeport, Grand Bahamas.

Well, life has returned to normal here in Bermuda.  Hurricane Nicole thundered out of the island, leaving some damage in her wake - but thankfully, no lives lost and minimal injuries.  Mostly downed trees and power lines, scorched shrubs and a few boats and yachts sunk or tossed onto land.  We are very relieved.  The winds blew at 217 km per hour at one point - quite scary.  The only real consequence to us was the loss of internet for about 4 days.  And that was only Category 2 and 3. 

Who would have guessed we would be the lucky recipients of two hurricanes on two different islands.  On October 7 2016 - whilst celebrating our 38th Wedding Anniversary at the Beach House Restaurant - our property manager in Freeport, Grand Bahamas sent us photos of the damage to our home.  

Our condo is very close to the coast line and on one of the canals.  Unfortunately, we were one of the many direct hits with our home suffering extensive damage from the Category 4/5 storm.  With sustained wind speeds in excess of  145 mph (233 kilometres per hour!!) structures on the island appear to have been severely damaged.  One of the most powerful storms in the history of the island walloped us all.

Our condo lost its roof and rain deluged the interior of the house.  Ceilings, a/c, carpets and furniture all took a beating.  Fortunately, no injuries to tenants, so we are thankful for small mercies.   

I will update this blog when I have more news. 

October 18, 2016: The island is currently without power and in some places, without water as well.  Some of the hotels are functioning but we have been told that there are no vacancies as they are full with hydro crews and electricians from the mainland who have come to help islanders get back on track.  So we will bide our time, but will be going down as soon as possible to help co-ordinate clean up and rebuilding.  Another silver lining is we have locals on our condo board who will direct efforts, and we have a good property manager who has diligently stayed in contact with us.

Our manager salvaged some of the furniture and stacked it in the second bedroom which is the only room still intact.  The condo board is working with the insurance company. This will be a long and slow process - we will have to wait in line for roof/electrical contractors to repair the damage.  In the meanwhile, let's hope that that was the last of the hurricanes for Grand Bahamas for awhile.


October 24, 2016:  Due to mold issues all of the drywall has been removed, ceilings torn down, and carpets ripped up.  The insurance claim continues to be negotiated.  We still can't get to the island.  

October 28th, 2016:  We have finally managed to book seats on a flight to Bahamas - we will arrive on Sunday November 5.  Let's hope we can get things moving.

The saga continues.