The Trump administration will not be granting Bahamians affected by Hurricane Dorian temporary protected status.
Acting Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Mark Morgan said Monday that the administration was considering whether to grant the status to residents of the Bahamas fleeing devastation from the storm, although an administration official told NBC News Tuesday that would not be the case.
Temporary protected status would allow those from the Bahamas to live and work in the United States temporarily until conditions are deemed safe for them to return to the island nation.
Despite that, Bahamians will still be allowed to come to the U.S. temporarily with the right travel documents, they just won’t be granted work permits.
The Category 5 hurricane lashed the Bahamas leaving destruction and death in its wake. It made landfall in the northern part of the country with historically powerful 185 mph winds and then stalled out, flooding many parts of the Bahamas with devastating storm surge and torrential rains.
The official death toll sits at 50, although thousands still remain missing as rescue workers comb through the wreckage. As of Monday, 1,500 Bahamians affected by the storm have come to the U.S.
