Hurricane and storm surge warnings have been rife throughout the last week as the formidable Hurricane Dorian stampeded its way across the Bahamas and North Carolina's Outer Banks. The hurricane, which was labeled as a record-breaking "Catastrophic Category 5 storm," produced the strongest and most deadly wind speeds on modern record, and has left tens of thousands of people homeless.
The deadly storm, which is currently over the cold waters of the Labrador Sea off Canada, has claimed the lives of over forty people, though this number is sadly expected to rise.
As the clean-up operation begins in the Bahamas, more and more heartbreaking stories are emerging of those who didn't survive the storm. And one dad has spoken out about his horror at watching his young son get swept away in the turbulent and shark-infested floodwaters while sheltering from the rising tide on the roof of their house.
Keep reading to hear the heartbreaking details around the tragedy, which truly is every parent's worst nightmare.
Hurricane Dorian became one of the modern world's most formidable storms.
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Dorian initially developed from a tropical wave in the Central Atlantic on August twenty-fourth last month. And it went on to grow into an extremely powerful tropical cyclone, causing widespread flooding and destruction to the Bahamas and North Carolina's coast.It was categorized as a Category 5 hurricane.
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But what exactly is a Category 5 hurricane? Well, even our president doesn't quite know the answer to that. President Trump unbelievably revealed his confusion over the storm, despite 4 of them having threatened the U.S. during his presidency.A Category 5 hurricane is the deadliest of them all.
In just 2 weeks, Dorian has caused destruction on an unprecedented level.
As #HurricaneDorian approached the #AbacoIslands, NOAA's #GOESEast zoomed in on the powerful storm's eye. The Cat.… https://t.co/XPVLUN0ZFF— NOAA Satellites (@NOAA Satellites)1567350989.0
The Bahamas took a true battering in the storm.
September 1, 2019 will probably go down as one of the worst days in Bahamas history.... #HurricaneDorian https://t.co/osyxyNO4hB— Heather Zons (@Heather Zons)1567396660.0
The storm consistently threatened the States.
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Hurricane Dorian spent a week stampeding right towards the path of Florida's peninsula, and tens of thousands of East Coast residents prepared for the worst.Residents braced themselves.
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The most severe storm effects were felt the most in coastal Georgia and the Carolinas in the middle and latter half of last week as Dorian picked up speed and headed north.Yet, despite the storm affecting Georgia and North Carolina...
Video of a tornado passing near Pender County Fire Station 18 along Highway 17 near Sidbury Rd. Video courtesty of… https://t.co/MDEzmWxQ1u— NWS Wilmington NC (@NWS Wilmington NC)1567682745.0
But the same cannot be said for the Bahamas.
Horrifying video from the Bahamas https://t.co/YQW0DdJnFt— Andy Simancas (@Andy Simancas)1567437679.0
Lachino Mcintosh was the first to lose his life in the storm.
His sister is also missing.
First death recorded in Abaco following Hurrican Dorian passage on Abaco.... BP BREAKING| The first recorded death… https://t.co/TvE2Pl5Vjh— Bahamas Press (@Bahamas Press)1567394895.0
Over 40 people have now been confirmed to have died.
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At least 43 people are dead, and officials expect that number to rise dramatically as rescue efforts continue.The storm has caused deadly flooding.
"That’s my kitchen window that water is hitting, and that has to be a minimum of about 20 feet above the ground." B… https://t.co/zVsJq84nNQ— CNN (@CNN)1567485068.0
Heartbreakingly, several bodies have been spotted in the raging waters.
Residents were urged to take shelter.
Oh wow 😮 houses 🏠 were completely destroyed In the Abaco Islands in the Bahamas. Let’s pray for all in this storm p… https://t.co/K37mYYTgLY— 🌍James Julmis🌍 (@🌍James Julmis🌍)1567383578.0
Even though many of the houses were completely destroyed in the storm.
"Power lines are down, lamp posts are down, trees are across the street – it is very dangerous to be outdoors if you don't have to be outdoors," Henfield continued.
As soon as the weather permits, first responders will go to those areas where we have reports from individuals who were in distress."
Not only do these floodwaters have dangerously strong currents...
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They are shark-infested, too. And one dad has bravely spoken out about watching on helplessly as his young son was swept away in these turbulent and deadly waters.AJ, aged 5-years-old, was tragically swept away with the current.
The pair were sheltering from the rising waters on the roof of their house.
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“So, I grabbed my son and I put him on top [of] the roof," Farrington told the paper. “The water was high on the roof." He recalled how he tried to comfort the terrified boy: “I keep telling him, ‘Don’t cry. Close your month. Don’t cry. Keep breathing. Don’t cry. Close your mouth,’" he said.He remembers his terrified son's last words.
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“Before I could sit on the roof to hold him, the gust from the hurricane dragged him across the roof back into the surge on the next side," Farrington said. “I still could remember him reaching for me and calling me, ‘Daddy!’" Yet, despite Farrington's best efforts, AJ couldn't be found again.He spent hours searching for his son.
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“I was like feeling to see if I could feel some kind of cloth, some kind of clothes, some kind of skin, flesh, tennis, something," Farrington told the paper through tears. “I ain’t find nothing," he said. “I come back up. I hold my breath and I gone back down again. All this time, people carried my wife to safety and they calling me, but I ain’t want to go because I didn’t want to leave my son." Farrington eventually became too exhausted from fighting against the current and had to abandon his search. Let's hope that AJ's body can be found and that his family gets the closure they deserve. RIP, little guy.