OPA-LOCKA, FLA. (WSVN) - A man whose life was altered by both hurricanes Katrina and now Dorian is on disaster duty in the Bahamas. He’s helping out in any way he can.
He came to Miami-Dade County from New Orleans, and then moved to the Bahamas.
Leading this shipment is Sidney Torres, who lost everything and is now giving back.
Torres is a New Orleans entrepreneur who owns and develops resorts in the Bahamas, stars in a national television show and has led fundraising and relief efforts in several disaster zones.
At Miami Opa-Locka Executive airport, volunteers were seen packing pallets for a plane load of medical supplies bound for the Bahamas.
The cargo plane is filled with 6,000 pounds of medical supplies, professionally packed in New Orleans bound for the Bahamas and is said to be equipped to treat up to 90,000 people.
There were also food palettes included in the haul totaling 32,000 meals that will arrive in the island over the next several days.
“We created an emergency room on a pallet,” said Torres.
Torres partnered with a New Orleans hospital as well as Bahamian non-profits to make deliveries logistically efficient.
“We had doctors and nurses come to my warehouse and lay it all out and build these triages on a pallet,” said Torres.
Disaster relief for Torres is a personal effort. His childhood home and neighborhood were destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.
“A lot of people that I knew died after the storm was over because they couldn’t deal with the depression of the loss of their family members or their pets,” said Torres.
His personal experience and his connection with the Bahamas made this effort especially important for Torres.
“Imagine 185 mph winds coming at that,” said Torres as he pointed to the Bahamas.
The cargo plane landed in Nassau Monday afternoon and unloading began shortly after.
The boxes with medical supplies were to be put into an airport hangar.
Bahamian officials did not allow video of the hangar, but persons were seen getting meals and medical treatment.
“They’re coming from both Abaco and Freeport,” said Khaalis E. Rolle, Former Bahamian Minister of Investment. “They’ve been coming by boat, by helicopters, by airplanes.”
Aircraft from the U.S. military were seen all over and above Nassau’s airport.
Charles Pinder was seen carrying a portrait of his late father-in-law. He said his home in Abaco was destroyed.
Pinder evacuated for Hurricane Dorian but returned to retrieve what he could. He was looking to get on a flight to South Florida to be with his family, when he met Torres.
“I had family that looked just like that. The only thing they were holding was a photo of their father, their grandfather or grandmother, and that was the only belongings they had left,” said Torres.
Torres immediately related to Pinder and wanted to help.
“When I was asked, could I take him back on my plane to Florida to meet with his family, so they can figure out what their next step is since they lost everything,” said Torres. “It’s not even a question. I said, absolutely, yes.”
Pinder takes pride in his island and has the nation’s coat of arms and flag tattooed on both of his arms.
“We’ll be back,” said Pinder. “We’re going to rebuild and get back on our feet again.”
In addition to the disaster relief, Torres is also reminding people that most of the Bahamas remains open for business.
Torres remains in the Bahamas and is working with Bahamian officials on tourism and other improvements.
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