Tourists can be flown out of the Caribbean island of Jamaica, which was badly damaged by Hurricane Melissa, from Saturday. The country’s largest airport, Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay in the northwest of the island, will be open for commercial flights from the weekend, Transport Minister Daryl Vaz said.
According to the Jamaican government, there were around 25,000 tourists on the island when Melissa hit the island as a Category 5 hurricane on Tuesday (local time). The Foreign Office said there were also a high double-digit number of Germans among them.
At least 50 people died in several Caribbean countries as a result of the storm. At least 19 people have been killed in Jamaica alone, a country with 2.8 million inhabitants. According to reports that have yet to be verified, the number could rise by five more victims, Education and Information Minister Dana Morris Dixon said at a news conference. Entire areas are devastated and many communities isolated.