Fear for Heskey family
Emile agony over island relatives
FOOTBALL ace Emile Heskey fears his family were “wiped out” when 185mph Hurricane Irma tore through part of the Caribbean where “everything is gone”.
EMILE Heskey fears his family have been “wiped out” by Hurricane Irma.
Some of the former Liverpool footballer’s relatives have been missing since the 185mph storm hit Barbuda last week.
Heskey said: “My mum and dad were fortunately lucky. They caught the tail end of it.
“But my mum’s family is from Barbuda and they were basically wiped out. Everything is gone. “My mum can’t get hold of them. The retired England hero is backing the Peter Virdee Foundation charity which is helping survivors.
But the relief effort is threatened by another powerful storm heading for the Caribbean.
Heskey, 39, said: “We can’t commit to anything because I believe there is another hurricane on its way towards Barbuda and Antigua.
“We don’t know how much damage that is going to cause and what is going to be the final aid bill.”
Leicester-born striker Heskey played more than 500 games in his 18-year professional career.
He was bought by Liverpool in 2000 for a record £11million – the highest fee paid by the Reds at the time.
Two of his sons are following in his football footsteps and both play for Manchester City’s academy.
A father of six, Heskey celebrated the birth of his youngest daughter Milanna in June.
Meanwhile, the death toll from Irma has risen to more than 60 across the US and the Caribbean.
Five people have died at a Florida nursing home which had its power cut off for three days.
Firefighters found “a number of people in respiratory distress” at the facility in the city of Hollywood after its air conditioning failed.
Temperatures have soared to 32C in the sunshine state, raising fears for the elderly residents of more than 680 care homes.
Around 25% of houses have been destroyed in the Florida Keys. Many buildings have been left coated in seaweed and alligators are roaming the flooded streets.
Almost four million Florida homes still have no electricity and food supplies are dangerously low.
Father-of-five Fontil Daity said last night: “I don’t know what else we are going to eat.
“There’s nothing. There’s no hope.”