Help RJ to Recover: A Hurricane Dorian Hero
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About three weeks ago Hurricane Dorian stalled over Grand Bahama island for 40 hours bringing with it 185 mph winds and an unprecedented 20 ft storm surge causing a lot of devastation to my family. My brother, RJ, barely escaped with his life and just the clothes on his back. Our mother's house was flooded and their vehicles were damaged beyond repair. In total, the loss and damage suffered is about USD $200,000. I am forever grateful that everyone is alive and physically well, but now the long road to recovery begins.
This fundraiser will support my brother, Roland Strachan “RJ”’, to financially recover after he lost everything in the storm, including his livelihood. I currently live in Washington DC, but I am a native of Freeport, Grand Bahama. Every dollar will be used to help RJ recover and get back on his feet. Your contributions will help RJ to restart his auto business by purchasing new equipment and tools and to make hurricane repairs to the family home where he is now living. I will send all funds to his bank account via wire transfer. Please read below about my brother’s harrowing experience and how he saved the lives of 4 of his neighbors!
On Monday morning, September 2nd at around 6 am flood waters began to come into RJ’s apartment. Expecting some minor flooding, he put out sandbags the night before. But when he peeked through the window into the darkness early that morning, the wind howled and he could see that his home was already completely surrounded by water. Trapped inside, the water rose up to his ankles and within an hour it was nearly up to his chest! By 9 am the contents of his apartment were floating around him.
He knew that his neighbors were home and thankfully called them to make sure they were okay. They were trapped in the ceiling of their apartment next door with their two young children as the water was rapidly rising. They weighed their options: if they stayed in the apartment, even in the ceiling, their chances of getting out alive were slim as the water would continue to rise and they would eventually drown! He figured that the best option was to get into his 17 ft boat that was tied up outside.
First he needed to immediately get his neighbors out of their apartment. All their windows were boarded up and they couldn’t open the door because the flood water would rush in. To free them, RJ climbed into his roof and used a hammer to break through the cinder block wall that separated the apartments. They then climbed over to his side with their two little girls and escaped through his back window. Thankfully the boat was still where he left it tied up outside and was equipped with life jackets and rope. It would be what eventually saved their lives.
Forced to abandon their homes, they got into the boat and went out in the storm with two small children. Dorian was nearing its peak and sea water had engulfed their entire neighborhood. They were trying to stay afloat in a 20+ foot storm surge. The plan was to make it to a nearby two-storey house in another cul de sac and hopefully someone would let them in. Everything was under water including the vehicles and the wall surrounding the apartment complex. The winds were ferocious and they could barely see. As they tried to navigate carefully, the engine hit a submerged concrete pillar and stalled. The boat was drifting with the current into the power lines and it became clear that getting to that house was not going to happen.
In a panic the neighbor threw out the anchor, but it didn’t have any rope attached! With the winds howling and the water raging, the next best thing was to tie the boat to a pine tree but the line broke. They used more rope and tied up against two trees this time. The situation was traumatic and terrifying. Some 25 feet of ocean water was now inland and all around them. The boat was bashing up against the tree trunks and waves and rain were causing it to take on water. Miraculously, an empty plastic container floated by, which they used to bail out the water. At that point, the only thing that mattered was to keep the boat afloat and keep everyone alive.
For the rest of the day the storm kept raging and seemed like it was never going to end. They saw the contents of people’s houses float by. The water smelled like sewage and the sound of the hurricane was like a freight train. Keeping their backs to the wind and rain, they spent the whole night bailing out water until their fingers were numb and swollen.
The next morning on Tuesday, the water level had subsided somewhat and they drifted to a nearby house. The door was blown open. Exhausted and hungry, they went in and ate what they could find: just one can of tuna and a tin of corned beef that they opened with a knife. They rested for a while and hoisted the kids up into the roof, the only dry place in the home. After the water continued to recede, they put the kids back in the boat and dragged it a mile through waist deep water until they were back at the apartment where they decided to wait for rescue.
It was now more than 30 hours since they were out in the storm and evening was approaching again. Their cellphones had died a long time ago and there was nothing but water and debris all around. It seemed like they might have to spend another night in the wind and rain but RJ could hear noises and trucks in the distance. He quickly realized it was the sound of emergency teams out rescuing people. That’s when he grabbed his flare gun from the boat and fired a distress signal into the air.
Around 6:30 pm our prayers were answered and all 5 of them were rescued with a bulldozer. RJ was reunited with his friends (who had bravely gone out with the rescuers to search for him), his mother, and of course his loyal dog Sassy. Always the prankster, his friends snapped this playful photo of him when he was brought to safety.
RJ is currently sleeping on our mother’s sofa (remember our mother’s house also sustained damage due to flooding) while he begins the long road to recovery. All donations will solely be used by RJ Strachan to recover and rebuild with our mom. Thank you.
This fundraiser will support my brother, Roland Strachan “RJ”’, to financially recover after he lost everything in the storm, including his livelihood. I currently live in Washington DC, but I am a native of Freeport, Grand Bahama. Every dollar will be used to help RJ recover and get back on his feet. Your contributions will help RJ to restart his auto business by purchasing new equipment and tools and to make hurricane repairs to the family home where he is now living. I will send all funds to his bank account via wire transfer. Please read below about my brother’s harrowing experience and how he saved the lives of 4 of his neighbors!
On Monday morning, September 2nd at around 6 am flood waters began to come into RJ’s apartment. Expecting some minor flooding, he put out sandbags the night before. But when he peeked through the window into the darkness early that morning, the wind howled and he could see that his home was already completely surrounded by water. Trapped inside, the water rose up to his ankles and within an hour it was nearly up to his chest! By 9 am the contents of his apartment were floating around him.
He knew that his neighbors were home and thankfully called them to make sure they were okay. They were trapped in the ceiling of their apartment next door with their two young children as the water was rapidly rising. They weighed their options: if they stayed in the apartment, even in the ceiling, their chances of getting out alive were slim as the water would continue to rise and they would eventually drown! He figured that the best option was to get into his 17 ft boat that was tied up outside.
First he needed to immediately get his neighbors out of their apartment. All their windows were boarded up and they couldn’t open the door because the flood water would rush in. To free them, RJ climbed into his roof and used a hammer to break through the cinder block wall that separated the apartments. They then climbed over to his side with their two little girls and escaped through his back window. Thankfully the boat was still where he left it tied up outside and was equipped with life jackets and rope. It would be what eventually saved their lives.
Forced to abandon their homes, they got into the boat and went out in the storm with two small children. Dorian was nearing its peak and sea water had engulfed their entire neighborhood. They were trying to stay afloat in a 20+ foot storm surge. The plan was to make it to a nearby two-storey house in another cul de sac and hopefully someone would let them in. Everything was under water including the vehicles and the wall surrounding the apartment complex. The winds were ferocious and they could barely see. As they tried to navigate carefully, the engine hit a submerged concrete pillar and stalled. The boat was drifting with the current into the power lines and it became clear that getting to that house was not going to happen.
In a panic the neighbor threw out the anchor, but it didn’t have any rope attached! With the winds howling and the water raging, the next best thing was to tie the boat to a pine tree but the line broke. They used more rope and tied up against two trees this time. The situation was traumatic and terrifying. Some 25 feet of ocean water was now inland and all around them. The boat was bashing up against the tree trunks and waves and rain were causing it to take on water. Miraculously, an empty plastic container floated by, which they used to bail out the water. At that point, the only thing that mattered was to keep the boat afloat and keep everyone alive.
For the rest of the day the storm kept raging and seemed like it was never going to end. They saw the contents of people’s houses float by. The water smelled like sewage and the sound of the hurricane was like a freight train. Keeping their backs to the wind and rain, they spent the whole night bailing out water until their fingers were numb and swollen.
The next morning on Tuesday, the water level had subsided somewhat and they drifted to a nearby house. The door was blown open. Exhausted and hungry, they went in and ate what they could find: just one can of tuna and a tin of corned beef that they opened with a knife. They rested for a while and hoisted the kids up into the roof, the only dry place in the home. After the water continued to recede, they put the kids back in the boat and dragged it a mile through waist deep water until they were back at the apartment where they decided to wait for rescue.
It was now more than 30 hours since they were out in the storm and evening was approaching again. Their cellphones had died a long time ago and there was nothing but water and debris all around. It seemed like they might have to spend another night in the wind and rain but RJ could hear noises and trucks in the distance. He quickly realized it was the sound of emergency teams out rescuing people. That’s when he grabbed his flare gun from the boat and fired a distress signal into the air.
Around 6:30 pm our prayers were answered and all 5 of them were rescued with a bulldozer. RJ was reunited with his friends (who had bravely gone out with the rescuers to search for him), his mother, and of course his loyal dog Sassy. Always the prankster, his friends snapped this playful photo of him when he was brought to safety.
RJ is currently sleeping on our mother’s sofa (remember our mother’s house also sustained damage due to flooding) while he begins the long road to recovery. All donations will solely be used by RJ Strachan to recover and rebuild with our mom. Thank you.
Organizer
Yolanda Strachan
Organizer
Washington D.C., DC