Convicts on loose after Irma

BRITAIN: About 100 ‘‘very serious’’ convicts were on the loose on the British Virgin Island of Tortola yesterday as Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson flew to Anguilla to face likely protests over Britain’s slow response to Hurricane Irma.

Sir Alan Duncan, the Foreign Office minister, revealed that the prisoners had escaped when their jail was breached in the recordbreaking storm a week ago, prompting a ‘‘serious threat of the complete breakdown of law and order’’.

Stranded British tourists have spoken of their terror of looters and machete-waving gangs in the streets of Tortola and expressed anger at the government’s failure to arrange their evacuation, contrasting their efforts with those of foreign governments.

Emily Thornberry, the shadow foreign secretary, said it was ‘‘alarming’’ that a week after the hurricane, Duncan was ‘‘still talking about the potential evacuation of British citizens’’ because the ‘‘most vulnerable’’ were being prioritised.

‘‘With the security situation deteriorating in many of the affected islands, all British citizens should be considered vulnerable.’’

Almost 50 British officers have gone to Tortola to help capture the escaped convicts and secure the island, while Royal Marines were deployed to protect the governor.

A Ministry of Defence source said local police knew where the convicts were but were unable to round them up until they had an undamaged and secure building in which to house them.

Johnson went to the British Virgin Islands as part of a hastily arranged visit to British overseas territories devastated by the storm, starting with Anguilla.

His trip came after visits by Dutch King Willem-Alexander and French President Emmanuel Macron to neighbouring Dutch and French territories. The two countries flew home about 500 of their citizens on Tuesday aboard military planes.

Foreign Office sources said Johnson had been keen to travel as soon as possible but did not want to interfere with aid efforts.

–