Embassy: No T&T citizens on death list (with CNC3 video)

Hurricane Sandy hits the US

Up to late yesterday, no T&T citizens living in the United States had been reported dead, missing or badly injured as a result of the devastation left by Hurricane Sandy, said Dr Neil Parsan, T&T’s US ambassador. In a telephone interview yesterday Parsan said of the 38 deaths recorded so far, 17 were from New York.

He said T&T’s Embassy in Washington was working in collaboration with various organisations and began an inventory yesterday to determine how many T&T citizens living in the US were affected by Sandy and what their needs were. Since the embassy’s Web site and phone number were made public on Monday, Parsan said he has been flooded with calls from both T&T and from citizens in the US.

Most were concerned about their loved ones. Parsan said: “It has been non-stop calls, e-mails and text messages. I continue to keep in touch with those in Trinidad and those in the US. Yesterday afternoon especially, people kept texting and calling when people just could not communicate with their families.

“The majority of calls are from those asking about the safety of their families and if we could help locate them so we are trying to bridge that gap. “There have also been many calls from Trinidadians living in the US that they cannot access basic facilities like electricity but there is nothing really we could do about that.”

He said while the US was still under storm watch for the next 48 hours, the T&T embassy  was “combing every state to ensure citizens living in the US were accounted for.” He added: “It’s a huge exercise but we are going through state by state and taking an inventory of names and the numbers of Trinidadians in each state.

“ By the end of this week we should have a better idea in terms of numbers of how many Trinidadians were affected by the hurricane but at the moment it’s all us in America affected by Sandy.” Those wishing to reach the embassy can e-mail: ttembassy.com or [email protected] or [email protected] or call 1 202 204 0812.

The Miami office can be reached at 1 305 374 2199 or by e-mail at: ttcgmiami.com.