A contingent of 120 Jamaica Defence Force soldiers departed the island Friday to provide recovery and humanitarian support to the Bahamas, following the devastation caused by hurricane Dorian.

They were accompanied by 11 members of the Royal Canadian Air Force, which provided airlift support.

At least 43 persons in the Bahamas have died and homes and infrastructure destroyed, as a result of hurricane Dorian, which hit the country as a category five storm.

Prime Minister Andrew Holness, who met with the troops at the Norman Manley International Airport ahead of the departure, expressed gratitude to the Canadian government for facilitating the deployment of the JDF Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) to the Bahamas.

Holness said that the JDF is prepared to assist in any area that the Bahamian government may require, but in the initial stages the focus will be on recovery, search and rescue, logistics, medical assistance, as well as emergency engineering needs.

He said Jamaica is considering in what other areas the government can provide assistance with.

He urged the dart crew to be ambassadors and avoid unnecessary risks to their safety