We have been abandoned, say couple trapped on ‘lawless’ island
A BRITISH couple have been hiding in a rat-infested bathroom with no water for five days as their Caribbean island descends into lawlessness in the wake of Hurricane Irma, their family said.
Jos Smart, 26, and his girlfriend Julia Taylor, 30, say they had been abandoned by the British Government and were too afraid to leave the half destroyed hotel that they found refuge in amid reports of looting and violence.
The category five storm hit the island on Wednesday and it has since been placed under curfew to try and restore order.
British Troops and police officers have been sent to help the British Virgin Islands (BVI), but families of those on Sint Maarten, which is Dutch and shares the island with the French Saint Martin to the north, say that because it is not a British territory their loved ones have been abandoned.
Jos and Julia have not received any support from the Foreign Office, their family say, and officials could not even tell Julia where to go for help when she contacted them on Saturday.
Ian Smart, Jos’s father, said that they were too scared to leave the room as the “lawlessness is getting worse”.
“They have not had any water for a day, they have got a bit of juice, but they are trying to keep under the radar,” he said.
Jos, originally from Cumbria, and Julia, from Haslemere, Surrey, have been working on a super yacht in the area for a few years and he had just completed his Ocean Yachtmasters course. The 79ft boat they had been living on now lies destroyed in the harbour.
Mr Smart, an architect, said: “During Irma they said that the sounds were apocalyptic and they have likened it to a war zone. They are holed up in a half demolished bathroom and their phone is running out of battery.
“They are in a bit of a state. There have been rats in their room looking for food. At night there were people knocking on their door. So there are 12 hours of blackness to get through as well as the terror of not knowing who is going to knock down the door.”
The family have contacted the FCO and their local MP Rory Stewart, who is also a Foreign Office minister, but say that it is a one way conversation with them informing officials of the couple’s situation but not being given any information or help in return.
The couple booked a flight tomorrow, but don’t know how they will get to the airport or if they will be allowed on without copies of their tickets.
American and Dutch citizens have been already evacuated, it is understood, while some British citizens are said to have been pulled out of evacuation queues meant for other countries.
A foreign office spokesman said: “We have been in regular contact with the Dutch and the Americans since the onset of this crisis to coordinate our response and help for those affected. We understand that evacuation is based on individual need, rather than nationality, with the most vulnerable prioritised. Indeed a number of British citizens were evacuated from the island by the US yesterday.
“We are in touch with British nationals on Sint Maarten and have advised them to follow advice on the ground. While we are unable to get a team to Sint Maarten, we have staff in Curaçao to help those evacuated there.”