Tis the Season for Giving and the Bahamas Still Needs Your Help

Stormseal donates time, materials and labor to protect severely damaged Linton’s Cottages. 

It’s been just three months since one of the worst hurricanes on record devastated the Bahamas. Hurricane Dorian hit on September 1, 2019 leaving behind $3.4 billion in damages, according to a recent report by the Associated Press. 

Abaco Island was one of the hardest hit areas suffering severe structural damages across the islands. With blue tarps failing, a lack of skilled labor and shortage of building materials, the islanders are struggling to repair and weatherproof their homes.

Linton’s Cottages on Green Turtle Cay in the Abaco Islands chain suffered substantial damage. The beach cottages have been a quiet, tropical getaway for vacationers since the 1940s. Hurricane Dorian's intense winds completely destroyed full-time caretaker Fanny McIntyre's home.  Groundskeeper Odny Bellot's roof was left leaking badly. Linton’s Cottages owner, Lee Linton LaPointe, organized a Go Fund Me account to raise money for Fanny and Odny, which caught the attention of her longtime friend, Stormseal USA Operations Manager, Dan Cleary.  Dan contacted pilot Eric Wiborg who donated his time and plane to fly the Stormseal team to The Bahamas.  He also brought along a brand-new bicycle as a Christmas gift for a young local Abaco girl. 

After landing at Treasure Cay, the team chartered a ferry to transport themselves and their supplies to Green Turtle Cay to begin sealing the damaged structures. Working alongside groundskeeper Odny, they set to work readying the cottages for the application of the Stormseal system. Fortunately, the weather was cooperative, and the team spent several days prepping the roofs and repairing structural damage that resulted from the storm.

With no guests on site, caretaker Fanny brought lunch and dinner each day to the workers so they wouldn’t have to take breaks to eat. The team was able to complete most of the work during their four-day visit but were hampered by strong winds on the final day. While they didn’t complete everything on this trip, they were able to totally seal Odny’s residence.  With Stormseal protecting his cottage, Odny will be watertight and dry until the carpenters arrive to complete permanent repairs to the roof.

Despite the pervasive destruction to infrastructure and property the residents, second homeowners and friends of Green Turtle Cay have collectively rallied to move forward with debris removal and repairs to restore their delightful little island.  The positive attitudes at work on Green Turtle Cay are evident in the smiles and determined efforts of those who stayed after the storm.  Soon mainland power will be restored, and the pace of rebuilding enhanced. 

If you are looking for a way to help support the recovery in the Bahamas, you can learn more here.