David Burt said last night he had offered the island’s support to the Bahamas after Hurricane Dorian devastated large areas of the island chain.

The Premier extended the offer to the Bahamian Prime Minister, Hubert Minnis, saying he would consult with the Governor to deploy The Royal Bermuda Regiment if necessary.

Mr Burt added: “We will be assessing our resources, to determine what we can provide, and how we can best assist.”

His remarks came after the Bahamian Embassy in Belgium appealed for aid.

Renée Webb, the Bermuda Government’s representative in Brussels, the capital of Belgium and the EU, said Maria O’Brien, the Bahamian ambassador, had asked for an international relief effort. The northern Bahamas sustained unprecedented damage from the storm, which packed the highest wind speed at landfall of any Atlantic hurricane on record.

The Queen and Prince Philip said they were “shocked and saddened” at the loss of life.

The letter from the Royals’ summer home in Balmoral, Scotland, was posted on the Government House website.

The Bermuda Red Cross asked for financial donations, only, to help with relief efforts as the storm, which yesterday had dropped from a Category 5 to Category 2, continued to batter Grand Bahama.

Ann Spencer-Arscott, the executive director of the Bermuda Red Cross, said the islands would require help from around the world as the massive extent of the damage was assessed in the storm’s aftermath.

Donations can be made at BNTB account 20 006 060 365472 200 or to Clarien account 4010035760,

Donations by bank card can be made via the Bermuda Red Cross number 236-8253.

Brian Madeiros, president of Coldwell Banker Bermuda Realty, said he had been in touch with colleagues from Coldwell Banker’s affiliate in the Bahamas.

He added: “On the basis of the communication I have received during the last couple of days from a variety of local sources, many of the island communities will remain significantly impacted for years to come.

“Devastation is an appropriate description for many of the outer islands and their communities.”

The Bahamian company said that agents, family and friends, remained cut off, and that some had had their homes destroyed, as Dorian crossed from Abaco to Grand Bahama.