Disaster response / August – December 2019
Operation Abaco
Among the first organizations on Abaco after Dorian, HARP Rescue got a hospital’s lights, water and radios working again.
- Firstamong the first organizations on Abaco
- Powerhospital’s main generator rebuilt
- Waterdesalination system built
- Commsmesh network for doctors
Figures from HARP Rescue’s impact report for Operation Abaco.
A / The situation
The strongest storm the Bahamas had seen.
Hurricane Dorian struck the Abaco Islands on September 1, 2019, with sustained winds of 185 mph — tied with the 1935 Labor Day hurricane for the strongest Atlantic landfall on record.1 It then crawled over Grand Bahama, nearly stationary, for about a day.1
At least 70 people were killed in the Bahamas, and damage reached US$3.4 billion,2 roughly a quarter of the country’s GDP.
B / The call
Get people out. Get power back.
HARP Rescue deployed to rescue civilians who were stranded and trapped on Abaco.
Requests came from respected NGOs, fire departments and law enforcement agencies, all asking for help extracting people in immediate danger — and for help restoring generators and communications.
C / The plan
Turn the hospital back on.
The team quickly assessed the needs and made a plan with two goals. The first was rescue: reaching people who needed life-saving help.
The second was infrastructure. Without electricity and communications, the island’s hospital could not treat the many people injured in the storm. So HARP focused on restoring power and communications to get the hospital working again.
D / In the field
Power, water and a network.
HARP was one of the first organizations to arrive on Abaco. Its first priority was rebuilding the main electric generator for one of the island’s leading hospitals, so the hospital could resume operations and treat patients.
The team then built a desalination system that turned seawater into clean drinking water, giving the hospital safe water and sanitation.
With partner goTenna, HARP set up a wireless mesh communications network so doctors could talk to each other and to the mainland, coordinating care for the injured.
E / Challenges
Every part came from somewhere.
The hardest problem was materials. Everything needed to restore power, water and communications had to be found and brought over from the mainland.
It took many organizations and dedicated local residents working together, but every item was eventually found and delivered.
F / The outcome
Light, water and a voice.
HARP Rescue helped rescue people on Abaco and restored three things the island’s hospital could not work without: electricity, clean water and communications.
Those repairs reached far beyond the hospital walls, helping the injured get treatment and helping the community begin to recover.
Sourcing materials, rebuilding infrastructure and carrying out rescues all at once is only possible when everyone — organizations and local citizens alike — pulls in the same direction.
From the operation’s conclusion
Sources
HARP Rescue’s actions and figures come from its own impact report for this operation. Background on the event comes from the public sources below.
A hospital without power is just a building. Help us bring it back.
Every rescue requires preparation, experience, and resources. Your contribution helps put those resources in place before the next mission begins.
Help fund the next missionSecure checkout through Zeffy · HARP Rescue is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit · Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law
