Fairfax County, Virginia’s urban search and rescue team is hard at work helping storm-stricken victims of Hurricane Dorian, rescuing two people from a remote Bahamian island over the weekend.
On Sunday, the U.S. Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance tweeted photos of Virginia Task Force One walking a devastated and defoliated neighborhood on the island of Abaco:
UPDATE: Today @USAID DART @VATF1 teams conducted aerial and ground search & rescue operations in the hard-hit islands surrounding #Abaco, #TheBahamas. The team rescued two survivors of #HurricaneDorian who were stranded on a remote island. pic.twitter.com/4bKSxMJRkc
— USAID/OFDA (@theOFDA) September 8, 2019
More than 60 members of the Fairfax-based crew have been conducting search and rescue operations since last week, bringing with them four canine teams and 50,000 pounds of specialized equipment.
As of Sunday evening, the task force had cleared 156 homes on Abaco and surrounding islands, searching each for survivors and determining whether the buildings are still sound for human habitation.
More than 47 metric tons of supplies have arrived in the Bahamas since Dorian ended its prolonged streak of destruction, intended to help an estimated 44,000 people.
D.C. celebrity chef José Andrés is also serving thousands of freshly cooked meals to those in need through his own relief operation, World Central Kitchen.
Forty-four people are confirmed dead, Bahamas officials said Sunday, with the number of fatalities expected to rise as rescue teams continue to reach communities cut off by floodwaters and collapsed buildings.
