At a Glance
The official death toll in the Bahamas from Hurricane Dorian is 45, but a newspaper in the islands claims the actual number of people killed in the storm is in the thousands.
- At least 45 deaths have been confirmed in the Bahamas in the wake of Hurricane Dorian.
- The Bahamas Press says more than 3,000 people have died in the hurricane.
- Hundreds are lining up hoping to get out on a flight or aid boat.
- Rescuers and relief groups are starting to reach survivors.
A statement from the Royal Bahamas Police Force said 45 bodies have been recovered, 37 in Abaco Island and 8 in Grand Bahama Island.On Monday, the Bahamas Press reported that observers on those two hardest hit islands say more than 3,000 people could have died in the hurricane.
"The numbers are 'staggering' just as the Minister of Health Dr. Duane Sands suggested last week. The government though continues to confirm the number to be a mere 43 confirmed victims in one of the deadliest disasters on record in the Bahamas. That number is far much higher," according to the newspaper, which is an outspoken critic of Prime Minister Hubert Minnis and his government.
(MORE: How to Help Hurricane Dorian Survivors in the Bahamas)
Bahamian officials have warned that the number of deaths is likely to rise as security forces and other teams search devastated areas of the northern Bahamas.....MORE
"The public needs to prepare for unimaginable information about the death toll and the human suffering," Sands told local radio.
Reports from survivors also point to a much higher death toll.
“I’ve seen dead bodies. I’ve seen bodies of people crushed by debris, hanging out [of] windows. It’s not good,” Brian Symonette, who lived on Abaco, told Time magazine. “I’ve seen seven dead bodies under a [shipping] container.…"
While Sean Connery seems to have made it through the storm, two dozen members of Sidney Poitier's family are missing.
