The French part of the Caribbean island St Martin is "95 percent
destroyed" after Hurricane Irma tore through the region, top local
official Daniel Gibbs said late Wednesday.
"It's an enormous catastrophe. Ninety-five percent of the island is
destroyed. I'm in shock. It's frightening," said Gibbs, a former French
lawmaker, speaking on Radio Caribbean International.
The island is in need of emergency assistance, he said. "I have sick
people to evacuate, I have a population to evacuate because I don't know
where I can shelter them," he said.
At least six people have been killed in the French part of St Martin, Guadeloupe prefect Eric Maire said.
Hurricane Irma, one of the most powerful Atlantic storms on record,
cut a deadly swath through a string of small Caribbean islands on
Wednesday.
The French minister for overseas affairs, Annick Girardin, was to fly
to Guadeloupe late Wednesday with emergency teams and supplies to
assess the situation, the ministry said.
"It's too soon for casualty figures (but) I can already tell you the
toll will be harsh and cruel," French President Macron said, adding that
he expected damage on St Barts and St Martin to be "considerable".
St Martin ("Sint Maarten" in Dutch), located south of the island of Anguilla, is divided between the Netherlands and France.
St Barts ("Saint Barthelemy" in French), which lies to the southeast
of St Martin, is administered with the status of a French collectivity,
as is the French part of St Martin.
Source - TheJakartaPost
