Dorian death toll raised to 70

Dorian death toll raised to 70
The Mudd, Abaco, following Hurricane Dorian in September 2019.

NASSAU, BAHAMAS – The official death toll from Hurricane Dorian has risen to 70 after police on Abaco recovered the remains of an unidentified body in The Mudd.

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) reported that the body was found on Tuesday.

Of those storm victims, 60 were found in Abaco and 10 in Grand Bahama.

Hurricane Dorian pummeled into Grand Bahama and Abaco on September 1 – 3, packing maximum sustained winds at 185 mph, gusts over 220 mph and storm surges 18 to 23 feet above normal tide levels and higher destructive waves.

The strongest storm on record to hit the Northwest Bahamas left thousands displaced and hundreds still missing.

Officials have projected that the final death count will be “staggering”. The number of missing people is still being ascertained as officials have not released an update since late October.

The Category 5 storm also leveled two of the largest shantytown communities on Abaco.

A 2018 government report on the shantytowns estimated the total population for the six communities at over 3,500 – the majority of which resided in The Mudd and Pigeon Peas.

It is unclear how many from the communities survived the storm. 

About Sloan Smith

Sloan Smith is a senior digital reporter at Eyewitness News, covering a diverse range of beats, from politics and crime to environment and human interest. In 2018, Sloan received a nomination for the “Leslie Higgs Feature Writer of The Year Award” from The Bahamas Press Club for her work with Eyewitness News.