Air Station Clearwater sending rescue teams to the Bahamas

CLEARWATER, Fla. - Coast Guard crews from the Bay Area are getting ready for rescue missions in one of the areas hardest hit by Hurricane Dorian.

Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater is deploying personnel and aircraft to Andros Island, where they’ll be staging for post-storm response in the Bahamas.  The teams include MH-60 Jayhawk helicopters and their crews, along with health service technicians.

Andros was the first part of the Bahamas to get pummeled by Dorian, the most powerful hurricane ever to hit that area. The storm slogged over the islands as a Category 5 hurricane beginning Sunday, and though it has since slightly weakened, destructive 150-mph winds and high waves will continue to slam the Bahamas for several more hours.

As of Monday afternoon, Dorian was still only moving west-northwest at 1 mph, just north of Grand Bahama.

A few early videos on social media suggest widespread flooding and incredible damage to parts of the Bahamas.