Hurricane Irma: British Mother Trapped Amid Violence And Destruction Accuses Boris Johnson Of 'Abandoning' Brits

A British mother-of-two trapped in the Caribbean after hurricane Irma has hit out at Boris Johnson, saying he has “abandoned” British citizens while trying to insist the rescue effort has been effective.

For several days Amy Brown, along with other Brits and EU nationals, has hoped for evacuation from St Martin, having become stuck as the hurricane tore through the region, killing four people on the French/Dutch island and destroying buildings and infrastructure.

Most of Brown’s resort on the Dutch side was destroyed and she said there were reports, on the French side, of men marauding with machetes as law and order collapsed.

Amid growing criticism of the British response, the family’s plight was put to Johnson on The Today Programme on Monday.

The Foreign Secretary said authorities “responded in a timely and highly organised fashion”.

Speaking via WhatsApp to conserve phone battery, Brown, 36, told HuffPost UK: “Boris can tell everyone what a good job he’s doing in British territories but he has abandoned British citizens to other Governments who are helping their citizens proactively and not waiting passively leaving their citizens with no running water and increasing crime.”

Brown said her resort was almost destroyed by the hurricane and its staff had gone back and forth with them to the airport every day, where they waited in vain for evacuation.

She said she had waited for three days, once for 13 hours, as French, Dutch and American authorities evacuated their people.

Brown has contradictory information about which planes would take who, including a French plane that said it would take all EU citizens but then took off with only French passengers because it had been delayed and had to leave quickly.

There is no shelter from the sun and the only food they are provided with is occasional cereal bars, Brown said.

“On the French side (of the island), we have been told of people with machetes going apartment to apartment. People have entered hotel rooms of some of the guests and looting is rife all over the island.

“We are all very worried and it got very emotional when we had to leave the airport. Some people had nowhere to go and had kids with them.”

Resort staff have done their best to protect their guests but will soon close the resort leaving them with nowhere to stay overnight, Brown said.

Brown’s father Geoffrey Scott-Baker, who is in Britain with his daughter’s two small children, told HuffPost UK it was “totally untrue” of Johnson to say other countries were taking priority British cases.

Scott-Baker said: “[Johnson’s comments] were just a load of political waffle, defending the position which the evidence suggests is completely wrong. The British are not responding.

“We do not have embassy or Government officials on the ground. The response is totally inadequate...

“How come the Americans, the French and Dutch can organise that airlift just like that?

Original Article
Source: huffingtonpost.co.uk
Author:  Jack Sommers