NASSAU, BAHAMAS — The Commissioner of Police 2020 Policing Plan indicates that police recorded only 54 missing people in the wake of Hurricane Dorian, despite recent attempts by officials to clarify the issue.
Minister of National Security Marvin Dames tabled the policing plan in Parliament last week.
In the commissioner’s foreword, referring to the impact of the deadly storm, COP Paul Rolle notes, “In the aftermath of the storm, the police recorded 63 deaths and 32 reported missing persons in Abaco and 11 deaths and 22 reported missing persons in Grand Bahama.”
In January, former COP Anthony Ferguson also told reporters that police recorded 54 people still missing on Abaco and Grand Bahama.
Last month, following damning criticisms by former Health Minister and Elizabeth MP Duane Sands over the government’s mishandling of the issue, Dames advised that the Dorian missing persons list stood at 279.
He was responding to allegations from Sands that no explanation had been given on how hundreds of names were excluded from an early list of people reported missing.
Sands called for a coroner’s inquest to bring closure to grieving families.
Dames decried the former Health minister’s comments as “disingenuous” and “misleading”, noting that he was shocked and “profoundly disappointed” by Sands.
He explained that from the onset, individuals in search of missing relatives were making reports to multiple agencies and NGOs – which were compiled to a centralized list and reconciled.
Dames said the number of missing people in the wake of Hurricane Dorian currently stands at 279.
At a press conference staged by the Disaster Reconstruction Authority, a senior police officer advised the missing number stood at 33.
Dames has previously urged the public not to “get fixated” on the issue, noting that the numbers will fluctuate from time to time.
