CANADIANS TRAPPED IN DOMINICA

The devastation wrought by hurricane Maria is hampering plans to remove more than 150 Canadian students from the storm-ravaged Caribbean island of Dominica. Damaged infrastructure, nonfunctioning airports and a lack of communication are frustrating efforts to get the students home, said Omar Alghabra, parliamentary secretary to the minister of foreign affairs. “The situation in Dominica continues to be difficult,” Alghabra said Friday. “The communications are down. Airports are dysfunctional, so we are unable to land any aircraft there.” About 150 Canadian students are stranded at the Ross University School of Medicine, with about a dozen more at a different postsecondary institution on the island, Alghabra said. The Liberal government is in constant contact with school officials, he added. “The universities are arranging for boats to transfer these students to St. Lucia, where our consular officials are waiting for them there,” Alghabra said. “We will offer services or assistance when they arrive and then arrange for their return home.”