A local teen who had been trapped in the Bahamas following Hurricane Dorian was back in the United States this morning, much to the delight and relief of his worried family here at home.
As reported yesterday by BarrieToday, Oro-Medonte resident Grant Goodbrand, a 17-year-old who's going into Grade 12 at St. Joseph's Catholic High School in Barrie, left Canada on Sunday, Aug. 25 to visit his girlfriend's family in the Bahamas for what was supposed to be a weeklong vacation.
The teenager was due back home on Sunday, Sept. 1, but Hurricane Dorian threw a major wrench into those plans, battering the Caribbean island nation hard, leaving a trail of destruction and death.
The Category 5 storm left at least 20 people dead in the Bahamas and the death toll is expected to rise.
Grant's father, Dave Goodbrand, told BarrieToday that the push to find a solution by Jason MacLeod, the pilot father of his son's girlfriend, made all the difference in rescuing the group, which also included MacLeod's wife and their three daughters.
They had initially tried to get the group off the island by private boat from Florida on Wednesday, but were turned back by the United States Coast Guard due to dangerous conditions.
When Plan A didn't work, they quickly turned to finding another solution, said Goodbrand, who was in regular contact with MacLeod. MacLeod and a family member were able to connect with a pilot friend willing to make the treacherous trip by air even though they didn't know whether the private landing strip was in any condition for a small plane to land.
"Right from the start, (MacLeod) was not very keen on waiting for a government solution, because he knows, with the amount of people on the islands and going through what they're going through, it would take some time for them to co-ordinate efforts," Goodbrand said. "He was bound and determined, and wasn't giving up."
Fortunately, the air strip, which wasn't far from where the group was holed up, was useable this morning and the pilot was able to pluck the group and take them back to Florida.
"There was some anxiety this morning between my wife and I, because we had no contact and didn't know what was going on," Goodbrand said. "Of course, we were worried, but if the pilot left Florida this morning and came in to land and saw that it wasn't safe... he would've continued by and we'd have to come up with a different plan.
"We had to put a little trust into these gents when they fly and that they know the conditions and their capabilities," added Goodbrand, who was contacted through Facebook by one of MacLeod's family members to let him know the group was aboard the plane and en route to the U.S.
Goodbrand said he was leaning toward waiting for a government solution, but news reports out of the Bahamas indicated people there were growing frustrated, so they knew time was of the essence, especially with the main airport destroyed in the storm.
"There's starting to be the smell of death and supplies are dwindling," he added of news reports. "They're seeing some medevacs happening, but it's more for injured people than the general people. There's really no structure to an evacuation plan.
"So we just wanted them off the island, and as time ticked away with resources running low, (MacLeod) just perservered and they made it happen," Goodbrand said. "I'm quite amazed and obviously very happy."
Goodbrand received a quick message from Grant, letting his dad know he's OK. The teen is expected back home as soon as Friday night or possibly the weekend.
The relieved father says he's extremely grateful things came together for the two families; others were not so fortunate.
"We know how fortunate we are to be able to co-ordinate a rescue privately to get them off the island safely before it gets worse," he said. "There are lots of people there who aren't in the same position and would've given anything to get off that island if they had the opportunity. They may be there for weeks or who knows how long."
Goodbrand says media reports he has seen indicate other families are also trying to organize their own methods to get loved ones out of the Bahamas as the situation worsens.
"I know the government will do their part and get these people the help they need, but it's going to take time," he added. "Our family is safe and it was a very uncomfortable situation to go through, but they'll get to go home. There's thousands and thousands of people who don't have anything now.
"We have to take a step back as a family that has experienced something like this and re-evaluate what we can do to help make things better for those people," said Goodbrand, who wants to spearhead efforts to help others, which he says will be part of the healing process.
"Once the dust settles, they will really realize the magnitude of what they've been through," he said. "There's always things that occur in the world and people need help, but when you've been through it as a family, it really hits home. You have to do your part to make things better (in the world)."
The United Nations has indicated 70,000 people in the Bahamas are in need of immediate humanitarian relief.
The Category 3 storm is now moving its way up the east coast of the United States toward the Carolinas.
There are also reports of a second tropical storm developing in the Atlantic Ocean.
