Life After Dorian

A former cop uses photography to show us.

By Peak Design

January 7^th, 2020

We were introduced to Laura Hamel (@fridaygrrl) through our friend at Barebones Living (a brand worth checking out). In addition to being a Peak Design superuser and overall wonderful human, we learned that Laura has put her passion for photography to good use. She has been volunteering in The Bahamas with OpenWorld Relief to assist in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian. Laura reminds us to get out there and use photography to tell the stories that need telling. Below she tells us how she got involved and why The Bahamas still needs our attention and support...

Disaster relief is something that’s been on my mind for a long time—well before Hurricane Dorian decimated Abaco. As a former law enforcement officer, I’ve missed the fulfilling nature of serving and helping people in a crisis.

No one calls the cops when something good happens and most first responders I know are proud to be able to help people in situations that would make many others run in the opposite direction.

But family commitments and other career opportunities have kept me busy for the past 20 years. Last year I left a high-stress corporate position to freelance and travel. When Dorian struck, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to return to my first-responder roots. Providing life-sustaining assistance to people who have lost everything sets my soul on fire and keeps my perspective in check. And it’s pretty hard to worry about regular stuff in my own life when I’m serving others.

Destroyed truck and commercial buildings in Marsh Harbour, Abaco, The Bahamas.

Damaged and destroyed homes in Treasure Cay, Abaco, The Bahamas.

Destroyed homes in Marsh Harbour, Abaco, The Bahamas.

Flooded classroom with broken windows at Central Abaco Primary School, Marsh Harbour, Abaco, The Bahamas.

Survivor at a pig farm with one of her pigs.

There are communities of survivors on Abaco in dire need who depend daily on assistance from the relief agencies working down there. We’re delivering food and clean water, helping build bucket filters to make dirty water into clean water, sorting and distributing donated relief goods, delivering medical supplies to where they can provide the most aid, clearing roadways, installing solar generators, rescuing animals, fixing vehicles, helping other NGOs with their missions, and the list goes on and on. Because OpenWorld Relief has trained firefighter volunteers, we helped fight a brushfire and then helped the local fire department with getting their station—which was all but destroyed—and their one working truck cleaned up, and then our mechanics made repairs to their other trucks. We hope to continue to help the local fire departments on the long road to having a fully functioning emergency response system on the island. OpenWorld Relief is a tiny organization but gets more done in a single day than I ever would have thought possible.

OpenWorld volunteers distribute solar panels and generators donated by Solar Libre and inverSOL to churches and community centers.

A survivor whose home was destroyed by Hurricane Dorian builds a platform for a Barebones shelter.

OpenWorld Relief volunteers assisting the Marsh Harbour Volunteer Fire Department with a brush fire.

My direct path into disaster relief was through a friend who had made connections with OpenWorld Relief when he was down there providing medical assistance right after the storm. He encouraged me to get in touch with them and I filled out an application and went through a screening process. Disaster relief isn’t for everyone, and relief agencies need to know who they’re sending into a disaster area or a humanitarian crisis zone.

The days are endless, personal comforts zero or minimal, and the risks of physical injury, illness, and psychological burnout are very real.

In addition to my law enforcement background, I’m a photographer, writer, and editor. Part of my mission there was to document the aid being rendered and help tell these stories back home, so that people who donate money or supplies see how critical their work stateside is. Helping a community to recover after something like this takes everyone to care—not just those who go down there. Indeed the best way most people can help is to donate to a charity they trust that's operating down there, and then plan their vacation in the Bahamas—the tourism industry is suffering—even in areas where there's minimal or no damage.