Hurricane Melissa-hit Caribbean to get $7M in Canadian humanitarian aid

Global Affairs Canada wrote Thursday afternoon that it was 'not aware of any Canadian citizens who have been injured or killed as a result of this hurricane.'

Ottawa has announced $7 million in humanitarian relief for Caribbean states hit by Hurricane Melissa — and the government says it might deploy soldiers if asked.

“Canada stands with the people of the Caribbean in its efforts at this moment, not with words but with action,” Randeep Sarai, secretary of state for international development, told reporters Thursday on Parliament Hill.

“And we’ll be here tomorrow to help rebuild stronger, safer and more resilient communities.”

Hurricane Melissa made landfall Tuesday. The Category 5 storm has since killed dozens of people in Jamaica, Cuba and Haiti while damaging infrastructure and causing widespread power outages.

Global Affairs Canada wrote Thursday afternoon that it was “not aware of any Canadian citizens who have been injured or killed as a result of this hurricane,” while Sarai said no Canadians had been reported missing as of that morning.

“Due to power outages in the region, establishing full communication with those on the ground may be challenging and take time,” the department wrote in a media update Thursday afternoon.

The department said its Havana embassy had not received requests for help from Canadians in Cuba, while the high commission in Jamaica is “inaccessible” but operating remotely.

Two members of the department’s rapid deployment team arrived Thursday in Kingston, and three more are set to arrive Friday, to provide emergency consular services and logistical support to Canadian diplomats.