TT students heading back to Jamaica

Trinidadian students who were airlifted from Jamaica before Hurricane Ivan hit last Thursday, will return to the island on Sunday. Paula Daniel, chief education officer at the Ministry of Education, said although some of the halls at the University of the West Indies campus at Mona were damaged, repairs were expected to be completed before Monday. She said the students were scheduled to depart Trinidad at 8 pm on Sunday. However, Education Minister Hazel Manning denied speculation the students would be charged by BWIA for the emergency flight, assuring, “We have not been asked.”

The two were speaking at a media briefing at the Ministry’s Alexandra Street office yesterday. Also present were three Trinidadian students who were brought back home. Asked about a complaint made to Newsday that student Jan Martin was barred from the flight, Daniel admitted that maybe one person had turned up at the Norman Manley Airport and had been denied a seat. She said some students might have missed the evacuation since, “they heard from me at noon, and had to be in the airport at 4 pm. We worked in a tight time frame.” However, UWI resident advisor Suzanne Charles said all students were told not to proceed to the (Kingston) airport unless their names had been confirmed on campus.

She added that out of the 250 Trinidad and Tobago nationals residing in Jamaica, 134 were evacuated, others opted to remain either at the homes of relatives or in the shelters provided. She stated that although students were lodged in different halls at Mona, there was a very close-knit relationship within the TT community, so most students were able to telephone each other when they heard about the evacuation. In addition to the Trinidadians, some non-Trinidadian nationals, including St Lucians, Barbadians and Grenadians, were allowed to board the BWIA aircraft.