BAHAMAS — Samaritan’s Purse is airlifting the Emergency Field Hospital to the Bahamas today, September 5, 2019, at the request of the World Health Organization and the government of the Bahamas.
A team of 16 staff members, including doctors and nurses, will be on the flight to help set up the mobile hospital.
The 40-bed facility will have an outpatient department and emergency room, equipped to serve up to 100 patients a day. There will be an operating room—with capacity for 10 surgeries per day—and an obstetrics ward with delivery room.
Yesterday, more than 30 tons of emergency relief were sent to the Bahamas aboard Samaritan’s Purse’ DC-8 aircraft. More than a dozen disaster response team specialists were also onboard.
By the end of the day, Samaritan’s Purse will have more than 30 staff members on the ground in the Bahamas.
The first plane load left Greensboro, North Carolina, around 9 a.m. yesterday and arrived in Nassau where it was unloaded. Onboard were emergency shelter materials, household water filters, and two community filtration units that turn saltwater into drinking water.
Samaritan’s Purse is also using a small plane and helicopter to support our work on the islands and to allow team members to access hard-to-reach areas.
“Families in the Bahamas are suffering and millions of others are bracing for Dorian’s impact as the storm continues to move,” said Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan’s Purse. “Please join me in praying for everyone affected by this hurricane, and for our teams as we respond in Jesus’ Name.”
Hurricane Dorian made multiple landfalls in the Bahamas on Sept. 1, packing maximum sustained winds of 185 mph, with gusts up to 225 mph. The then-Category 5 storm stalled over the archipelago for about 36 hours, devastating the Abaco Islands (Elbow Cay Marsh Harbour) and Grand Bahama. Reports indicate that around half or more of all homes were damaged or destroyed in some areas. Emergency rescues continue across the islands.
Samaritan’s Purse: International Crisis Response
Samaritan’s Purse stands ready to respond at a moment’s notice whenever and wherever disaster strikes. We specialize in meeting critical needs for victims of conflict, disaster, famine, and epidemics throughout the world, often working through ministry partners on the ground. We provide food, water, shelter, medicine, and other assistance in the Name of Jesus Christ.
To read more news on Disaster Relief on Missions Box, go here.
