The storm that was originally expected to be a Category 4 hurricane headed straight for Puerto Rico unexpectedly switched paths to the dismay of Bahamians. Dorian landed in the Bahamas on Tuesday, Sept. 3 as a Category 5 hurricane. After devastating the islands, it curved up to skirt along the coast of Florida before nearing the coast of the Carolinas and eventually ending its route in Nova Scotia, Canada. The Sunshine State’s coastal residents recognized how bad the storm could potentially be and prepared appropriately.

“We filled up gas cans for the generator,” Chemistry teacher and New Smyrna Beach resident David Duffy said. “I put up hurricane shutters on the bottom floor and the top floor. We did lots of laundry; we did not know if we were going to lose power or not.”

Dorian proved to be the deadliest hurricane on record to strike the Bahamas, with a death toll of at least 56, a number that is expected to rise due to the 600 people currently listed as missing. The storm hit the Abaco Islands first before making landfall in the Grand Bahamas. The Abaco Islands were the most severely impacted, specifically areas around Marsh Harbour called The Pea and The Mud. These areas hold a large population of undocumented imigrants. While the damage on the Abacos was detrimental, the damage on the Grand Bahamas was significant too. One estimate stated that 76-100 percent of buildings on these islands were damaged. Clean-up efforts are underway but the magnitude of the devastation has hindered progress. Mostly government hired crews, such as electricity repairmen and non-profit organizations are hard at work. Organizations world wide, as well as a few here in Central Florida and even some on campus, are collecting donations for the Bahamas.

“Student Government Association/Leadership and Interact Club at Lake Brantley are raising money to support hurricane Dorian relief in the Bahamas between October 14-25,” said english and Leadership teacher Audra Greuel.  “We will be selling World’s Finest Chocolate bars at $1 a bar in boxes with 60 bars. The proceeds from this will go to Team Rubicon- a non-profit company that employs American veterans to engage in humanitarian relief projects including clean-up and rebuilding after a hurricane.”

Additionally, due to Hurricane Dorian, the issue of climate change has been frequently spoken about in the news. This is because warm water fuels hurricanes, so as the earth warms, the likelihood of stronger storms increases, potentially causing more destruction with fewer years in between. The climate change debate, growing ever so near to the minds of Americans as hurricane season continues, has sparked the interest of potential 2020 presidential candidates. Many democratic candidates support the Green New Deal and are considering a carbon tax with the goal of net-zero emissions. These are widely popular ideas to combat the impact of climate change on the world, which creates a surplus in the number of powerful hurricanes.

“Over the break, I slept and waited for it to rain, which was disappointing,” freshman Taylor Forthofer said. “Talking about climate change is important because if hurricanes get worse then we are putting ourselves in more harm than before.”