If this was Gibraltar, we’d race to help

MY FRIEND Clare tried to visit her home on Thursday. She wanted to see if it still existed. She could not get there. It was the day after Irma struck Anguilla in the Caribbean, and trees and power lines blocked the roads. Another close friend had seen his business, a gym on the top floor of a building, wiped from the face of the Earth.

Anguilla has been devastated – the lights went out, the walls came tumbling down. So many houses and businesses have been destroyed. Roofs and possessions litter the ground as if a giant child had stepped on them in a fit of rage. The only high school and hospital, government buildings, the airport and ferry terminal, were all battered. At this stage we know that someone has died. By the time you read this you will probably have learned if Hurricane Jose has also pummelled the island.

The chief minister, Victor Banks, emailed me on Friday: ‘The world needs to know of the level of destruction this merciless storm inflicted on our island.’ Alas, as Irma heads towards Florida leaving a trail of shattered lives, I fear Anguilla may also leave our attention.

After all, the vast majority in the UK will not have heard of it – so why should we care? Well, just imagine if Irma’s devastation had been inflicted on the Falklands or Gibraltar. There would be a national outcry, with fundraising appeals – a sense of urgency that we should do everything possible to help our fellow British citizens.

It should be no different for Anguilla, a British Overseas Territory. Its 15,000 residents hold British citizenship and the UK Government has ultimate responsibility for its security. Anguilla has the same status as the Falklands or Gibraltar.

Anguillians take great pride in their loyalty to the Crown and have faith the Government will not desert them. I hope that this faith is not in vain.

The UK has pledged £32million in aid for its three affected territories, including the Turks and Caicos islands and British Virgin Islands. Three nations have to be rebuilt, but what has been promised so far is a drop in the ocean.

Surviving a hurricane is the easier bit – it’s living the tragic aftermath that’s tough.