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Caribbean L 8 ife, NOVEMBER 22-28, 2019
Two Haitian migrants sit as one stands amid the ruins of a home destroyed
by Hurricane Dorian in Abaco, Bahamas, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2019.
Associated Press / Ramon Espinosa
Damages to Bahamas by Hurricane
Dorian estimated at US$3.4B
By Nelson A. King
A new Inter-American Development
Bank (IDB) report has estimated the total
cost of the impacts and effects of Hurricane
Dorian on the Bahamas at US$3.4
billion, “with hundreds dead or missing
and impacts on the economy that will last
for years.”
The Washington, D.C.-based financial
institution said on Friday that the estimate
comes out to over a quarter of the
country’s gross domestic product (GDP),
or the equivalent of the US losing the
combined economic outputs of California,
Texas and Florida.
“The magnitude of the losses requires
a new development approach to achieve
climate and disaster resilience in areas
that range from location of settlements to
redesigning infrastructure and strengthening
environmental protection,” says
the report, “Assessment of the Effects
and Impacts of Hurricane Dorian in the
Bahamas.”
The IDB said that the number of confirmed
deaths caused by Hurricane Dorian
is 67, with 282 persons still missing as
of Oct. 18, 2019.
An additional 29,472 persons were
affected by the hurricane by damages to
their homes and assets, the IDB said.
It noted that, between Sept. 1 and 3,
Hurricane Dorian struck Grand Bahama
and Abaco with “punishing winds and
storm surges,” with the island of New
Providence also suffering some impacts.
“Inadequate construction and infrastructure
located in vulnerable areas
exacerbated the storm’s impacts,” the IDB
said.
Daniela Carrera-Marquis, IDB representative,
said: “It is important that those
directly affected by the disaster feel the
presence and solidarity of the government
throughout the difficult process ahead.
“Reconstruction efforts will last many
years, and will require a well-coordinated
participation of public and private sectors,
civil society and the international community,”
she said.
The IDB said the government of the
Bahamas asked it to assess the impacts of
Hurricane Dorian.
As part of a long-standing partnership,
the IDB said it teamed up with the United
Nations Economic Commission for Latin
America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) for
technical assistance with the valuation.
The taskforce was complemented by
the Pan-American Health Organization
(PAHO), the IDB said.
“Hurricane Dorian left a trail of
destruction to houses, essential infrastructure
and entire ecosystems that will
require major investments,” said Omar
Bello, Coordinator for the Sustainable
Development & Disaster Unit at ECLAC
and a lead author of the report.
“The economy and livelihoods will be
impacted for years to come from the
temporary absence of damaged assets,
especially those of tourism and fisheries,”
he added.
The IDB said the Damage and Loss
Assessment (DaLA) team of external
experts, ECLAC, PAHO and IDB staff
started in early October “the complex
task of collecting relevant baseline and
post-disaster data to assess the effects and
impacts of the disaster.”
The results are divided into damage,
losses and additional costs, the IDB said,
stating that damage is a monetary estimation
of the value of the physical assets
partially or totally destroyed in each sector.
L
osses are a monetary estimation
goods that go unproduced and services
that go unprovided during a period running
from the time the disaster occurs
until full recovery and reconstruction,
said the IDB, with additional costs being
outlays required to produce goods and
provide services that represent additional
spending by the public and private sectors.
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