- Hurricane Dorian pummeled the Bahamas this weekend, destroying houses and creating a storm surge of up to 23 feet.
- Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Minnis confirmed at least five deaths on Monday.
- A woman reported the death of her eight-year-old grandson in the Abaco Islands in the Bahamas on Sunday. He is the first named victim of the hurricane.
- Dorian was downgraded to Category 3 early Tuesday, while stationary over the Bahamas. It is expected to head close to the US coast later.
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At least five people have died in the Bahamas after Hurricane Dorian ripped through the island nation, the country’s prime minister said.
Hubert Minnis confirmed the deaths at a Monday night press conference, citing the Bahamas Royal Police Force. He did not give any details about the victims.
The five deaths took place at the country’s northeastern Abaco Islands, Minnis said. Officials will go to the island chain “as soon as possible” to identify the victims, he added.
“We are in the midst of a historic tragedy,” he said, according to The New York Times. “Our focus is search, rescue and recovery. I ask for your prayers for those in affected areas and for our first responders.”
The first victim was reported on Sunday night, with a woman telling local media that her eight-year-old grandson had died.
Ingrid McIntosh told the local EyeWitness News channel that her grandson, who was in the Abaco Islands, likely drowned.
"I'd just seen my grandson about two days ago, and my grandson told me he loved me," McIntosh said.
First death recorded in Abaco following Hurrican Dorian passage on Abaco....
BP BREAKING| The first recorded death of Hurricane Dorian is now being confirmed. Seven year-old, Lachino Mcintosh, drowned after his family attempts to relocate their home. McIntosh's sister is missing pic.twitter.com/UQ99XPlBEa
— Bahamas Press (@Moca_Foundation) September 2, 2019
The boy's mother found his body while searching for her daughter - the boy's sister - who had gone missing in the hurricane, McIntosh said. The daughter remains missing.
McIntosh did not name her grandson, but The Bahamas Press reported his name to be Lachino McIntosh. The Bahamas Press reported his age to be seven, rather than eight. Officials have yet to confirm the boy's death.
The Abaco Islands were worst- hit, with the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) observing a storm surge of 18 to 23 feet over normal tide levels in some areas of the island on Sunday.
Photos and videos taken there also showed floodwater appearing to reach the second storey of some residential buildings. Boats were also overturned, and debris scattered across the ground.
Minnis said on Monday that a parts Grand Bahama, another island, "is under three feet of water, including the ground floor of its hospital and the prime minister's office," according to The Times.
"Many homes, businesses and other buildings [in the country] have been completed or partially destroyed," he added.
https://twitter.com/WFLAJosh/status/1168236648825589761?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Dorian was downgraded to a Category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 120 mph, the NHC said around 2 a.m. Tuesday EDT.
