GRAND BAHAMA

island, The Bahamas, lying just west of Great Abaco Island in the Atlantic Ocean and 60 miles (100 km) east of West Palm Beach, Fla., U.S. It occupies an area of 530 square miles (1,373 square km). The island's economy is based on tourism (which experienced a dramatic boom in the 1960s), forest products (especially pine), and fishing. Important resort centres are Freeport, West End, Eight Mile Rock, and Pinder's Point. Freeport is a busy industrial and trade centre with cement and pharmaceutical plants and an oil refinery. Grand Bahama has one of the largest single-installation bunkering terminals in the Western Hemisphere. Pop. (1990) 40,898.