Hurricanes Irma and Jose

The Department of State continues to warn U.S. citizens to avoid travel to The Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, Cuba, Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands, St. Barthelemy, Barbuda, and St. Martin due to Hurricane Irma.

We encourage you to closely monitor this page for important updated information on available flights, and the operating status of U.S. embassies in the region.

Planned Flights for Thursday, September 14:

Bring your passport and travel documents to the airport. U.S. citizens may still proceed to the airport for processing if you no longer have your documents.

Anguilla:

U.S. citizens in Anguilla should travel to The Clayton J Lloyd International (Anguilla) Airport no later than 1:00 pm on the afternoon of Thursday, September 14 if they desire to board a flight departing to San Juan, Puerto Rico.  Onward travel arrangements from San Juan will be the responsibility of the traveler.  Passengers may be allowed to carry on one small bag. Medications and any other essential items should be carried on your person.  Children, the elderly, and persons with special needs will be boarded first.  Only service animals will be permitted to board the flights.

Several charter services are flying to St. Kitts, St. Lucia, and Puerto Rico.  U.S. citizens wishing to arrange charter service off Anguilla should contact Anguilla Air Services at info@anguillaairservices.com or +1 (264) 498-5922.  Flights arranged via Anguilla Air Services are not affiliated with the U.S. government. 

Dutch St. Maarten: 

The Department continues to monitor requests from U.S. citizens in Sint Maarten. Concerned citizens may contact the Department at IrmaEmergencyUSC@state.gov

The Department received information that the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line ship Majesty of the Seas will make a humanitarian visit to Sint Maarten to deliver supplies and embark passengers seeking to depart the island.  We understand that disembarkation will be in San Juan, Puerto Rico.  Onward travel arrangements from San Juan will be the responsibility of the traveler. 

In a previous evacuation, Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines permitted a limited number of evacuees to embark with pets.  Contact the cruise line directly with any questions at stormhelp@rccl.com.  Please note that the United States Department of Agriculture will inspect all animals upon entry to the United States at San Juan.  Dogs require a valid rabies vaccination and certificate; cats do not require documentation.  If you are not traveling with the original documentation, contact your veterinarian for a scanned copy of your certificate.  If you do not have proper documentation for your pet, you may be required to quarantine the animal for a period to be determined by the entry agent.  For more information, visit Puerto Rico Pet Import Requirements.

Commercial Evacuation Flights

• Delta Airlines will operate a humanitarian flight scheduled to arrive in Sint Maarten at 11:15 a.m. on Thursday, September 14.  The flight will return to Detroit via San Juan, Puerto Rico. 
• Jet Blue will operate a similar flight due to arrive at 10:30 a.m bound for John F. Kennedy airport in New York. 
• Additionally KLM Royal Dutch Airlines expects to provide shuttle flights to Aruba on Friday, September 15.

All airlines have indicated there may be available seats on these flights for passengers wishing to depart the island. 

British Virgin Islands:

U.S. citizens in the British Virgin Islands should travel to the Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport (a.k.a. Beef Island Tortola Airport) no later than 1:00 pm on the afternoon of Thursday, September 14 if they desire to board a flight departing to San Juan, Puerto Rico.   

For U.S. Citizens in Dutch St. Maarten:  U.S. citizens should follow the instructions provided by local authorities and call 911 locally if they require immediate assistance.  Shelters are available at the following locations:

• New Testament Baptist Church in Philipsburg;
• Sister Marie-Laurence Primary School in Middle Region;
• Belvedere Community Center in Belvedere;
• Dutch Quarter Community Center in Dutch Quarter;
• Rupert I Maynard Youth Community Center St. Peters;
• NIPA National Institute for Professional Advancement Cay Hill;
• Christian Fellowship Church Across from Pineapple Pete’s Cole Bay.

For U.S. Citizens in French St. Martin:  Please see the paragraph above with information on evacuation options from Dutch St. Maarten.

Communication with St. Martin is slowly being reestablished, and we continue to reach out to French authorities to determine what additional relief and rescue efforts are underway and to identify options for U.S. citizens.  Local authorities continue to recommend all affected by the storm to shelter in place.  The French Ministry of Interior has set up a public line emergency line (Tel: 01 82 71 03 37) and provided a list of shelters in St. Martin and in St. Barthelemy.

Local authorities report the border crossing between Saint Martin (French side) and Sint Maarten (Dutch side) will be closed at night.  U.S. citizens may be prevented from crossing into Sint Maarten at night.

For U.S. Citizens in St. Barthelemy:  The St. Barthelemy airport is open and charter services are flying.  Tradewind Aviation is flying several flights each day from St. Barth’s to Puerto Rico.  Tradewind can be contacted at 800-376-7922 x123.  These flights are not affiliated with the U.S. government.

For U.S. Citizens in Turks and Caicos:  The airport in Turks and Caicos is open and has resumed flight operations. 

Inquiries about lost luggage: We are aware of the situation regarding lost luggage and we are making every effort to obtain information.  Once we have any updates, we will make the information available.

 Local numbers for police and emergency services:

•  Cuba: 106
•  The Bahamas: 919 or 911
•  St. Maarten (Dutch side): 911
•  St. Martin and St. Barthelemy: The French Ministry of Interior has set up a public line emergency line: Tel: 01 82 71 03 37
•  St. Eustatius:  911 (police) and 910 or 912 (medical)
•  Saba:  911 (police) and 912 (medical)

NOTE: Use of Task Force Alert (tfa.state.gov): select "2017 Hurricane Irma"

• If entering information about a U.S. citizen in Dutch St. Maarten, Anguilla, Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, or St. Eustatius use "Netherlands" as the Last Known Country
• If entering information about a U.S. citizen in French St. Martin, Montserrat, St. Barthelemy, St. Kitts and Nevis, or the British Virgin Islands, use "Barbados" as the Last Known Country.
• If entering information about a U.S. citizen in Turks and Caicos, use "The Bahamas" as the Last Known Country.
• If there is difficulty using Task Force Alert, please email IrmaEmergencyUSC@state.gov and provide as much information as possible about your loved one.

We advise U.S. citizens to read and follow Department of State Travel Warnings on travel.state.gov. Scroll to the bottom center of the home page and select "See all Alerts and Warnings" to view Travel Warnings for:

• The Bahamas
• Cuba

U.S. citizens traveling and residing abroad are encouraged to enroll their travel plans on our website, travel.state.gov, using the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP.state.gov), and to read the Country Specific Information also found on the site.

Please see the latest Emergency Message on the applicable U.S. Embassy websites for additional information about this event:

Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean:  https://bb.usembassy.gov/
Emergency After-Hours Telephone:  (246) 227-4000

Cuba: https://cu.usembassy.gov/
Emergency After-Hours Telephone +(53)(7)839-4100

The Bahamas: https://bs.usembassy.gov/
Emergency After-Hours Telephone +(242)357-7004