UK comes to aid of hurricane struck islands

BRITAIN sent two military transport planes to the Caribbean yesterday to aid victims of Hurricane Irma as the British Virgin Islands declared a state of emergency.

Two planes loaded with “personnel, supplies and recovery equipment” were to set off, with one heading to the British Virgin Islands, an archipelago with around 28 000 inhabitants that was subjected to the full force of the mega-storm, a defence ministry spokesman told reporters.

On the ground, governor Gus Jaspert said he had declared a state of emergency, indicating there had been reports of both injuries and deaths during the storm.

In Turks and Caicos, another British territory struck by the hurricane, the disaster agency tweeted: “National shutdown has been declared. All residents & tourists are instructed to stay indoors.”

UK Prime Minister Theresa May on Thursday increased the aid budget for Irma to £32million (about R540-million) from an initial £12million (about R200-million) and said Britain was also sending two military vessels to assist in relief efforts.

One of the ships, fleet auxiliary vessel Mounts Bay, with Royal Marines and army engineers on board, as well as tents and water purifying equipment, was due to arrive in the British Virgin Islands yesterday.

Hurricane Irma has been ripping through the Caribbean since Wednesday, with its winds and torrential rains leaving a trail of devastation and killing 12 as it hurtles towards the United States.

In the Dutch part of hurricane-hit St Martin, looting was a “serious” problem, with troops seeking to restore order, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said yesterday.

Dutch officials confirmed one person was killed on the Dutch part of Saint Martin by the Category 5 storm, before it was downgraded early yesterday to a four as it barrelled towards Cuba and Florida. — AFP