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Wayne Neely is an international speaker, best-selling author, lecturer on hurricanes, educator, and meteorologist. Traveling extensively throughout the region and the world, Wayne addresses critical issues affecting all aspects of hurricanes, especially Bahamian hurricanes which is one of his central areas of expertise. The central themes of his books are always on hurricanes in general and the impact of hurricanes on all aspects of mankind's ever expanding society. He's a Weather Forecaster in Nassau, Bahamas and has been there for well over 26 years. He has a great passion for writing and does it in his spare time when he is not working at his main job as a weather forecaster at the Bahamas Department of Meteorology. Wayne Neely is a certified Meteorologist working at the Department of Meteorology in Nassau, Bahamas for the last 26 years-prior to that he majored in Geography and History at the College of The Bahamas in Nassau. He then attended the Caribbean Meteorological Institute in Barbados where he majored and specialized in weather forecasting. His love for hurricanes and the weather came about while growing up on the island of Andros where he listened quite regularly to his parents, grandparents and other older residents within the community talking about a major hurricane which occurred in 1929 and devastated the Bahamas. That piqued his interest in hurricanes and got him started on writing his first book called 'The Great Bahamas Hurricane of 1929.' He then went onto write 9 other books on Bahamian and the region’s major hurricanes. Over the years, Wayne has written several articles on hurricanes and other severe weather events for some of the major local and international newspapers and magazines. He speaks quite regularly to schools, colleges, universities and frequently does radio and television station interviews both locally and abroad about the history and impact of Bahamian, American and Caribbean hurricanes and hurricanes in general.

If you live in the Caribbean or Florida, you’ve probably heard tales about the Great Okeechobee Hurricane, which killed thousands and left behind wide swaths of destruction. Also known as the Saint Felipe (Phillip) Segundo Hurricane, it developed in the far eastern Atlantic before making its way over land and taking the lives of Bahamian migrant workers and Florida residents. This thoroughly researched history considers the storm and its aftermath, exploring an important historical weather event that has been neglected. Through historical photographs of actual damage and personal recollections, author and veteran meteorologist Wayne Neely examines the widespread devastation that the hurricane caused. You’ll get a detailed account on: •workers who were caught unprepared on the farms in the Okeechobee region of Florida; •challenges that those involved in the recovery effort faced after the hurricane passed; •personal and community turmoil that took decades to fully overcome. This massive storm killed at least 2,500 people in the United States of which approximately 1,400 were Bahamians migrant workers, becoming the second deadliest hurricane in the history of the United States, behind only the Great Galveston Hurricane of 1900. To this day, it remains the deadliest hurricane to ever strike the Bahamas.

Kindle Price: $3.99

Category: History; Nonfiction

The Great Hurricane of 1780, also known as Hurricane San Calixto II, is one of the most powerful and deadliest North Atlantic hurricanes on record. Often regarded as a cataclysmic hurricane, the storm’s worst effects were experienced on October 10, 1780. In The Great Hurricane of 1780, author Wayne Neely chronicles the chaos and destruction it brought to the Caribbean. This storm was likely generated in the mid Atlantic, not far from the equator; it was first felt in Barbados, where just about every tree and house on the island was blown down.The storm passed through the Lesser Antilles and a small portion of the Greater Antilles in the Caribbean between October 10 and October 16 of 1780.Because the storm hit several of the most populous islands in the Caribbean, the death toll was very high. The official death toll was approximately 22,000 people but some historians have put the death toll as high as 27,500.Specifics on the hurricane’s track and strength are unclear since the official North Atlantic hurricane database only goes back as far as 1851. Even so, it is a fact that this hurricane had a tremendous impact on economies in the Caribbean and parts of North America, and perhaps also played a major role in the outcome of the American Revolution.This thoroughly researched history considers the intense storm and its aftermath, offering an exploration of an important historical weather event that has been neglected in previous study.

Kindle Price: $3.99

Category: Science & Math

The Great Bahamas Hurricane of 1929, also known as the Great Andros Island Hurricane of 1929, was the only major hurricane during the very inactive 1929 North Atlantic hurricane season. The Great Bahamas Hurricane of 1929 was perhaps one of the greatest and deadliest hurricanes to impact the Bahamas and is often regarded as the greatest Bahamian hurricane of the twentieth century. It was the only storm on record to last for three consecutive days over the Bahamas, with pounding torrential rainfall and strong, gusty winds. The storm killed 134 persons in the Bahamas, mostly mariners and sponge fishermen, as it directly hit the islands of Nassau and Andros. This thoroughly researched history considers this intense storm and its aftermath, offering an exploration of an important historical weather event that has been neglected in previous study. Also included is a harrowing account of a dog called Speak Your Mind who rescued a sponge fisherman at sea. Through unique historical photographs of actual damage, author and veteran meteorologist Wayne Neely shows the widespread devastation left in the wake of this tremendous storm. Drawing upon many newspaper accounts, ship reports, and Family Island Commissioners reports from throughout the Bahamas, the author provides a fascinating glimpse of this hurricane and the devastation it caused the Bahamas.

Kindle Price: $3.99

Category: History

In October 1866, a powerful Category 4 hurricane struck the Bahamian Islands. With winds well over 140 miles per hour and even higher gusts that toppled trees, sank ships, peeled away rooftops, and destroyed vital infrastructures, the massive storm battered the islands with great ferocity. When the seas finally calmed and the winds died down, the massive storm had killed more than 387 people in the Bahamas alone and left a massive trail of destruction. Author Wayne Neely, a leading authority on Bahamian and Caribbean hurricanes, shares an engaging account of how the hurricane of 1866 not only devastated the islands, but also altered the course of Bahamian history forever. While demonstrating how the hurricane significantly impacted the wrecking and salvaging industry, Neely also educates others about the complex set of weather conditions that contribute to hurricanes. He includes fascinating stories of survival and heroism as the storm’s victims struggled to move forward in the midst of tragedy. Hurricanes are no novelty to the Bahamas, but all who were lucky enough to live through the howling winds and the terror of a sky filled with flying debris surely never forgot The Great Bahamas Hurricane of 1866.

Kindle Price: $8.69

Category: History

Hurricanes have long been a fact of life in the Bahamas. With extensive exposed coastlines jutting out of the Atlantic and uniquely flat lands and shallow coastal waters, these islands had seen many tempests before there was a Bahamas as we know it today. Hurricanes have shaped the islands’ landscape and, in a sense, their people as well. In the history of the Bahamas—often considered a patriarchal society in which the hurricanes traditionally bore the names not of women, but of the islands they devastated-- the storms have impacted all aspects of everyday life. A growing number of studies covering many aspects of hurricanes have examined their social impacts. Even so, the historical ramifi cati ons of the hurricanes of the Bahamas and of the wider realm of the Caribbean have rarely been approached. The Great Bahamas Hurricane of 1899 and the Great Abaco Hurricane of 1932 hold special places in the archives of Bahamian history. These hurricanes were two of the worst natural disasters the country had experienced at the time, and even to this day these storms are considered among the top ten most destructive Bahamian storms of all time. These two notable and very destructive Bahamian hurricanes resulted in the deaths of over 334 Bahamians in 1899 and 18 in 1932. Learn why as author Wayne Neely explores the breadth and depth of each disaster—not only how they impacted the society at the time, but how they impacted the progression of history.

Kindle Price: $3.99

Category: History