170 Indians evacuated from Sint Maarten
New Delhi, Sept. 13: As many as 170 Indians have been evacuated from the hurricane Irma-hit Sint Maarten and brought to the Caribbean island of Curacao by special flights chartered by the Indian government.
External sffairs minister Sushma Swaraj said the Indian envoy in Venezuela, Rahul Srivastava, informed that 60 other people were also evacuated along with Indians from the hurricanehit area.
Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar had said in a tweet late on Tuesday night that 110 Indians and Indian-origin evacuees were brought to Curacao from Sint Maarten.
In a series of tweets, Ms Swaraj said on Wednesday that the second flight carrying 60 Indians also landed in Curacao.
“Rahul Srivastava informed that second flight also landed in Curacao with 60 Indians and 30 others from St.Maarten,” the minister said on the micro-blogging site.
Sint Maarten, that is jointly administered by France and the Netherlands, was directly in hurricane Irma’s path.
New Delhi, Sept. 13: As many as 170 Indians have been evacuated from the hurricane Irma-hit St Martin and brought to the Caribbean island of Curacao by special flights chartered by the Indian government.
External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj said Indian envoy in Venezuela Rahul Srivastava has informed that 60 other people were also evacuated along with Indians from the hurricane-hit place.
Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar had said in a tweet on Tuesday that 110 Indians and Indianorigin evacuees were brought to Curacao from Sint Maarten.
In a series of tweets, Swaraj on Wednesday said the second flight carrying 60 Indians also landed in Curacao.
“Rahul Srivastava informed that second flight also landed in Curacao with 60 Indians and 30 others from St. Martin,” the minister said on the micro-blogging site.
St. Martin, that is jointly administered by France and the Netherlands, was directly in Hurricane Irma’s path. The island suffered widespread destruction after the storm made landfall last week and wreaked havoc on the Caribbean islands.
Meanwhile, Britain on Wednesday announced an extra $33.2 million in aid for its territories in the Caribbean that have been devastated by Hurricane Irma.
The funds were announced as Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson visited the British Virgin Islands and Anguilla, pledging ‘our absolute commitment’ to Britons there. “Today I’m announcing an additional £25 million to support the recovery effort, further to the £32 million of assistance I announced last week,” Prime Minister Theresa May told the House of Commons.
More than 1,000 military personnel are now in the region, with another 200 due to arrive within days, along with more than 60 police officers, she said.
Ms May insisted that her government’s reaction had been “speedy.”
“The devastation that has taken place means there will be a significant need for reconstruction in those British Overseas Territories,” she said.