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Almost 270 Trinidad and Tobago students at the Mona campus of The University of the West Indies (The UWI) in Jamaica say the Government has ignored their pleas for help as Hurricane Melissa intensifies and nears landfall on the island. United States forecasters issued a hurricane warning for Jamaica yesterday as Storm Melissa reached hurricane strength, threatening catastrophic flooding in the northern Caribbean. The Trinidad and Tobago Students Association (TTSA) insisted yesterday that reports suggesting students had received co-ordinated support from the Government were incorrect. Students say they are continuing to navigate the situation independently. The TTSA said other Caribbean governments—including Barbados, Grenada, Antigua and Barbuda, St Kitts and Nevis, and The Bahamas—have taken swift measures to support their nationals abroad. “Given the significant Trinbagonian student population at UWI Mona, it is disheartening that the guidance we have received has been limited to general advisories or suggestions to make personal travel arrangements on flights that have since become unavailable,” the TTSA said in a release. The TTSA said it is concerned about what it described as misleading reports suggesting students had been fully assisted. Many have had to fund their return to Trinidad and Tobago, adding to the already high costs of studying abroad, the TTSA stated. The TTSA urged the Government to take prompt and meaningful action to ensure the safety and welfare of all nationals studying in Jamaica. “We remain hopeful that, through open communication and decisive support, this matter can be addressed with the urgency and compassion it deserves,” the statement added. Student Iyanu Small told the Sunday Express via phone yesterday that they feel neglected and left to fend for themselves. She said Trinidadian students are the largest group of all the regional countries at the Mona campus. She said correspondence from T&T Government officials had been infrequent. “T&T Government officials said they are putting us as top priority, but that is not true. We are not being shown any form of urgency. “We received an e-mail letting us know that if we need to get a flight out, to send our information. But that was a mere two hours before the last flight. We don’t have the $US300 to US$1,000 for the flight. “Some students replied to the e-mail asking for financial assistance, but they said they won’t be able to provide financial assistance and basically told us to stay safe and watch the weather,” Small said. Small continued, “They said that they sent two planes for us and the planes returned to Trinidad empty. Obviously it was empty because we cannot afford to just pay for a flight back home in an emergency.” A parent of one of the students, Deborah Charles, in a letter to the Express yesterday, argued that students have been abandoned and left to fend for themselves. “I am writing to express my extreme dissatisfaction and disappointment in the way the Government of Trinidad and Tobago has treated our Trinidad and Tobago students who are still stuck in Jamaica at The UWI and most likely UTECH. “Other Caribbean countries have made arrangements to fly their students’ home or have them accommodated at hotels so they could be assured of food and water and some level of safety in the face of what is being called a catastrophic hurricane that is about to hit the country of Jamaica.” Charles continued, “Trinidad and Tobago students were, however, advised that they would be given priority to purchase tickets to return home. Parents are already covering tuition fees, hall fees, day-to-day living expenses, study materials, etc, for their children studying at Mona, since not everyone is receiving GATE coverage. “It is already extremely difficult for many of these parents to meet these commitments, and at a moment’s notice to find the means to bring their children home is asking a bit much. “Why haven’t our students been afforded similar opportunities? Even if a stipend were given to allow these students to purchase supplies of food and water to ride out the storm, that would have been a better gesture than doing nothing!” President of the TTSA Breanna Bethel also spoke with the Sunday Express by phone yesterday. She confirmed some food items had been arranged for the students. “There are about 300 students, could be more. And as best as we can, we are working with them to ensure that they have what they need, considering the circumstances. We are in contact with the High Commission and we have arranged for them to get food items,” Bethel said.
