The Kendal G.L. Isaacs Gymnasium, used as a hurricane shelter for displaced Abaco and Grand Bahama residents, has been deactivated.

Less that 200 persons, according to Minister of Social Services Frankie Campbell are still housed in the only remaining shelter in New Providence, The Bahamas Academy Auditorium, and some 67 persons or 30 families are currently residing in the Poinciana Inn on Bernard Road. 

“We have persons at the Poinciana Inn, but we’re not considering that a shelter because we’re not manning in the way of a shelter. We are considering it as a transitional space that we have set a timeline,” Campbell said.  

Campbell added that the timeline is three months and after it has ended, it is hoped that those families can return to their homes. 

“We are anticipating that our sister agencies and the authority of disaster preparedness, reconstruction, and the minister of works and everyone else who collaborated in these effort would put us in good possession, have many of them return to their homes,” he said. 

Meanwhile, as the 2020 hurricane season approaches, Campbell noted that the ministry is in preparation mode.

“Even though we are still living Dorian in the last seasons, we are still making preparation for June and we have learned some lessons.   We have also come to appreciate that there’s so much we can’t do alone,” Campbell said.

“We are extending our list of volunteers. We are in the process of volunteers, vetting our volunteers in advance to avoid what we faced the last time where we had persons come forth to volunteer, but we were not sure who they were. 

“I would have said in the House of Assembly that disasters bring out two set of people, missionary and mercenary. We have a reasonability to receive the missionary, but we also have the responsibility to weed out the mercenary. Also, we have the responsibility to protect our people, especially in the aftermath of a disaster.”