NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) president Robert Sands said yesterday that the local hotel sector has seen no material impact on cancellations or deferred bookings due to Hurricane Ian.
Sands said: “First of all, our prayers are with the families of all those impacted by Hurricane Ian. Based on a pretty broad survey of the sector, there has been no material impact on cancellations or deferred bookings. We will have to wait and see once the storm has passed, an assessment done, what impact it may have, particularly on supply chain issues.”
Vernice Walkine, the Nassau Airport Development Company’s (NAD) President and CEO said: “We did have a few cancellations yesterday and today all attributed to service into Florida gateways, as those primary airports planned their closure due to the expected severe weather impacts from Hurricane Ian. It is our expectation that those airline services will resume when the airports reopen.”
The storm has resulted in hundreds of flight cancellations as the result of airport closures in areas such as Orlando, Miami, Tampa, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, and Jacksonville. The storm is expected to cause further flight disruptions as it heads towards the Carolinas and Georgia.
Ian was downgraded to a tropical storm Thursday morning after battering the southwest coast of Florida as a Category 4 hurricane Wednesday afternoon, bringing winds of 150 mph and life-threatening storm surge.
President Joe Biden said Hurricane Ian may be responsible for “substantial loss of life” and could end up being the deadliest storm in Florida history. Some two million homes and businesses across Florida have been left without power as a result of the monster storm.
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