Dorian relief suspended in Bahamas to prepare for Tropical Storm Humberto

Aid efforts for victims of Hurricane Dorian were temporarily susp♛ended as the Bahamas braced for heavy rain and winds from Tropical Storm 💙Humberto, expected to strengthen into a hurricane when it moves out to sea Sunday night.

Although much weaker than the Category 5 hurricane tꦍhat devastated Grand Bahama and Abaco islands, Humberto on Saturday followed a similar path for several hours early in the day and then slowed to a near crawl as it approached the islands.

By the afternoon, the storm took an expected turn nort♔h, passing just east of Abaco. But the region was still seeing winds near 50 mph, and some of the Bahama Islands were forecast to get up to 6 inches of rain.

“As previous storms have taught us,💎 things change very quickly,🔴” Kwasi Thompson, minister of state for Grand Bahama told USA Today. “We want residents to take it seriously.”

The good newsꦓ was t🅰hat Humberto so far hasn’t produced a storm surge like Dorian’s, which flooded parts of Grand Bahama with up to six feet of water.

Dorian inflicted nearly $7 billion in damage and killed at least 50 🃏people, with more than 1,300 still missing.

While the Bahamas is made up of more than 700 islands, many with few or no inhabitants, Grand Bahama and the Out I🐼slands, of which Abaco is the largest, were among the most popular and fastest-growing travel destinations for a country whose economy relies on tourism for nearly 50 percent of its gross domestic product.

Humberto is expected to take a sharp turn northeast on Monday and head out to sea, but Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas will still likely see strong winds and heavy surf from the outer bandꦛs of the storm, along with up to an inch of rain, according to the National Hurricane Center.