The number of Canadians stranded in regions devastated by Hurricane Maria and seeking help from the federal government has jumped to 210, according to Global Affairs Canada.
Of those 210 Canadians, at least 196 are trapped on the island of Dominica, including 148 students from Ross University School of Medicine. A dozen more are at a separate post-secondary institution on the island.
Communications are down and the island鈥檚 airports are 鈥渄ysfunctional,鈥� which has made it impossible for planes to land, Omar Alghabra, parliamentary secretary to the minister of foreign affairs, told The Canadian Press on Friday.
A plan was in place to evacuate the students by boat to St. Lucia, but that action was delayed by a day due to 鈥渞ough seas,鈥� according to Global Affairs Canada. Consular officials are waiting to assist students in St. Lucia when they arrive, Alghabra said.
Priority is being given to those with medical needs. Depending on sea conditions, the evacuations could begin on Friday, the department said.
Alghabra sympathized with families awaiting word on their loved ones in Dominica and said the government was trying to provide them as much information as possible.
Canadian airlines have flown approximately 6,000 people out of areas affected by the hurricane, Global Affairs said on Thursday.
Dominica was one of the hardest hit regions with at least 15 deaths blamed on the storm and hundreds of homes destroyed. The powerful hurricane ripped through the small Caribbean island late Monday before making landfall in Puerto Rico.
With files from The Canadian Press and The Associated Press
