Labor Day is a day to remember and celebrate laborers in the country and thank them for the hard work they put in day-to-day.

While it is necessary to commemorate those who are the backbone of our country, another Labor Day happening deserves our attention right now and even over the course of the next days, probably weeks.

Hurricane Dorian was upgraded to a category 5 hurricane early Sunday morning, and shortly after, it made landfall in the Bahamas.

Some even called it the strongest modern hurricane to hit the Bahamas.

As reported by The New York Times Monday, at least five were reported dead in the Bahamas, though, as many have reported, the storm has been downgraded to a category 4.

Despite the downgrade, which is definitely better than staying a category 5, it is important to keep in mind that people have already died, while others have had their homes destroyed.

Not only is the hurricane a relevant thing to remember because it is happening, but the eerie part is the last time a hurricane like Dorian struck: Labor Day, 1935.

CNN reported Aug. 29 that Dorian is very similar to the “Labor Day Storm,” which hit south Florida Sept. 2 in 1935.

The storm had peak winds of 200 mph and left more than 408 people dead.

The Associated Press reported that Dorian tied the Labor Day storm as the most powerful hurricane to ever come ashore in the Bahamas.

CBS reported Monday that Dorian was stationary in the Atlantic Ocean, but that it will creep toward Florida, possibly even sparing the state from a direct hit.

Now, Georgia and South Carolina are issuing warnings and ordering evacuations for its ocean borders because the hurricane is expected to travel north toward their coasts.

Though our expectations for the possible destruction Dorian may lay upon wherever it hits are lowered, since it was downgraded a category 4, it would be ignorant to think we should care any less.

The truth is that the amount of concern for those impacted should not be any different, and we cannot blissfully celebrate a day off work while not mentioning those who now have no days off from putting their lives back together.

No one can say, either, that since the current body count is five, it does not warrant that much concern or worry.

If states are asking their residents to evacuate, there is reason for concern.

So, when thinking about Labor Day, remember what it is meant to commemorate, but also remember that the Bahamas is not celebrating.

In fact, they are dreading having to rebuild after a hurricane hit them that resembled one that hit them exactly 84 years ago on Labor Day.

Dillan Schorfheide is a senior journalism major. He can be reached at 581-2812 or dtschorfheide@eiu.edu.