Shown left to right: Eric Foster, Leah Parker, Nolan Meyer. (Lethbridge News Now)

By David Opinko

Lethbridge volunteers return from disaster recovery work in Bahamas

Oct 28, 2019 | 1:43 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – Three people from Lethbridge spent 13 days in the Bahamas after the Category 5 Hurricane Dorian wreaked havoc on the islands in late August and early September.

According to official estimates from the Bahamian government and media outlets, over 14,000 people were displaced from their homes and damages are estimated at over $7-billion USD.

Nolan Meyer, Leah Parker, and Eric Foster volunteered with Team Rubicon to reclaim the insides of peoples’ homes.

Meyer, who by day is the Emergency Preparedness Coordinator with the University of Lethbridge, said the three all had prior experience of some kind in disaster mitigation, reclamation, or preparing for disasters, but what they saw was unlike anything they could have gotten ready for.

He described what he said was the most shocking experience of all.

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“In the 40-foot waves that took over the landscape, sharks were actually on land and in peoples’ homes, so while they were trying to make sure their families were safe from the sharks circling their feet and swooping up family members, the hurricane was still going on and other family members were being swept away by the forces of nature.”

Parker joined Team Rubicon having previously been a radio systems coordinator with the Canadian military and now does the same work for the City of Lethbridge.

Because of her time in the military, Parker said she jumped at the opportunity to help those in need and signed up almost immediately.

She described the conditions she saw when the team first arrived.

“There was no one on the roads, there was utter devastation. It’s kind of like apocalyptic meets wild west – that’s really what it looked like, and the smell of rot, the smell of decay, the smell of mold, the smell of the death of a life, I would say.”

Foster, who is now the U of L’s security team lead, used to be an EMT in the United States. He was one of many responders that helped out in the aftermath of Hurricane Rita in 2005.

It was Foster who first encouraged Meyer to sign up with Team Rubicon last year, while Parker was already a member.

He shared the thoughts of the other two that their experience in the Bahamas made them re-evaluate their lives and their priorities, adding that physical possessions are perhaps the least important things he has.

Foster told media after the group’s return to Canada that natural disasters take a huge toll on your mental health, but organizations like Team Rubicon have a culture of counseling ingrained in them. Even after coming back home, he still regularly speaks to his fellow volunteers about how the experience has affected him.

He offered advice for anyone looking to volunteer, whether it be for disaster recovery or for anything else.

“Do your research, make sure that the organization that you do, whether it’s donating to or that you plan on volunteering with, they provide a support system for you before, during, and after the event, and that you’re also getting something out of it. Obviously, the organization needs to get something out of you, but you’re gaining something as well.”

All three local volunteers said that, should the opportunity, unfortunately, come where their help would be needed again, they would do so for sure.