1The immediate hurricane response
1.In September 2017, a series of devastating hurricanes passed through the Caribbean, resulting in the loss of life and the destruction of homes and property across the region. The British Overseas Territories of Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands and the Turks and Caicos Islands were struck by Hurricane Irma, a Category 5 storm with wind speeds of over 180mph. We recognise and commend the remarkable efforts of civilian and military personnel, both in the Caribbean and in the UK, who mobilised to help those affected in the region. We also applaud the determination and fortitude of the residents of the affected Overseas Territories under these appalling circumstances.
The UK Government’s immediate response to Hurricane Irma
2.Hurricane Irma made landfall on Anguilla and the British Virgin Islands on 6 September 2017 and passed over the Turks and Caicos Islands on 7 September. Hurricane Maria, despite initial concerns, did not move directly over the British Overseas Territories affected by Hurricane Irma but did make landfall on Dominica on 19 September. The FCO worked closely with the Ministry of Defence (MoD) and Department for International Development (DFID) to provide a response that was judged by the Government of Anguilla to be “swift and strategic.”1 The Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship, Mounts Bay, was positioned in the region in July, prior to the hurricane season, embarked with humanitarian aid supplies and a disaster relief team comprising 40 military personnel including Royal Engineers and Royal Logistic Corps.2 Mounts Bay arrived in Anguilla on 8 September.3 On 7 September, the Secretary of State for Defence directed the MoD to prepare a Joint Task Force for deployment to the region. The task force comprised an Operational Liaison and Reconnaissance Team, headquarters, transport aircraft, the Royal Marines Lead Commando Group, a Royal Engineer Unit, and HMS Ocean with nine helicopters embarked. HMS Ocean arrived in the region on 22 September.4 At its height, 2000 military personnel were deployed to the region alongside 40 UK aid experts, 50 UK police officers, 40 prison officers and 80 FCO staff.5 As of January 2018, 25 personnel remained in the British Virgin Islands, 16 in the Turks and Caicos Islands and no more remained in Anguilla.6
Availability of immediate resources
3.Unlike Anguilla’s neighbouring island, Saint Martin, which is divided between the French overseas collectivity of Saint-Martin and Sint Maarten, a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Caribbean British Overseas Territories do not host a military or police presence from their parent country. The governance arrangements and nature of the relationship between the local and national governments also differ between all three territories.7 Despite the presence of military and police personnel, media reports suggested both the French and Dutch sides of Saint Martin experienced looting, and that the short-term responses of both parent governments were criticised.8 The subsequent aid negotiations between Sint Maarten and the Netherlands resulted in the resignation of Sint Maarten’s president following two votes of no confidence in parliament.9 Anguilla’s submission said that a lack of a garrison had no bearing on the effectiveness of the UK’s hurricane response, and Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, Minister of State with responsibility for Overseas Territories, noted that the French and Dutch garrisons were themselves affected by the hurricanes.10
4.Storing supplies and skilled personnel on the Mounts Bay instead of the Overseas Territories themselves offered mobility but, as the affected islands are approximately 1000 miles apart, the immediate response was dependent on travel times and weather conditions.11 But we were also told that, with six territories (Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Montserrat, Turks and Caicos and Bermuda) in relatively close proximity, the pre-positioning and accommodation of materials, equipment and skilled personnel on the territories might have saved both time and money in the immediate response and allowed the islands to help one another.12 Lord Ahmad told us that discussions were under way to identify assets in the region which could be shared:
This is not just about one OT [Overseas Territory] on its own or the OTs in the Caribbean as a collective, but about other parts of the independent Caribbean—and, indeed, other nations. We are engaged in direct discussions with international partners to ensure that we can identify assets in the area—the hurricane season will be upon us again in June—and that whatever assets different countries have can be deployed.13
Recovery funding announcements
5.The UK Government made several announcements during and immediately after the storms’ passing through the region, many of which included pledges of relief and recovery funding.14 In an International Development Committee evidence session on 31 October 2017, the Minister of State for International Development, Lord Bates, said that the first tranche of funding was equivalent to £62 million:
£62 million was made up of allocations from different budgets. 33%—total £21 million—was allocated to DFID to be used for emergency relief and building supplies, contract of staff on the ground and contributions to the cost of local relief organisations. 58% of the total was allocated to cover MoD costs in respect of this. These were estimated according to the standard marginal costs calculators. The remaining 9% of the fund, which was £5 million, was allocated to the FCO, Home Office, Ministry of Justice and Department of Health, mainly for staff deployment costs in the immediate response.
In terms of the materials, a lot of the supplies that were being drawn on and being placed upon the C-17, other facilities and HMS Ocean were prepurchased stock of supplies that we actually have. In the full accounting process, once that has worked its way through the system, that will come into the total as well, but that is how the £62 million is broken down at the present time.15
Evidence from the Government of Anguilla suggested that it was not made explicitly clear that the funding being announced was being transferred amongst UK government departments, to pay for emergency supplies and staff deployment costs for instance, rather than in direct recovery aid for the territories themselves.16
The deployment of a Senior Civilian Representative for Relief and Reconstruction
6.On 14 September, a week after Hurricane Irma hit, the Foreign Secretary agreed to the appointment and deployment of a Senior Civilian Representative for Relief and Reconstruction, also referred to as Head of UK Taskforce on Hurricane Irma and Maria.17 Chris Austin from DFID was selected for the role to “oversee civilian and military operations as part of the UK’s response”.18 It was suggested this was a lesson learned from the 2014 Ebola crisis.19
Conclusions
7.As acknowledged by Lord Ahmad, there are a number of lessons to learn from the UK Government’s crisis response to the hurricanes that hit the Caribbean Overseas Territories in September 2017. While we welcome the FCO launching an exercise to identify regional and international assets that could be used in response to major natural disasters in future, it is regrettable that this had not been done previously as part of wider crisis planning, in addition to the welcome deployment of RFA Mounts Bay to the area in July. Given the Caribbean’s vulnerability to hurricanes we would have expected the FCO already to have had a good understanding of the resources available and an agreed collaborative international strategy in place. The FCO should work with regional and international partners to share best practice, disaster preparation plans and relief sites and develop an international strategy for disaster relief which will avoid duplication of efforts and make best use of nearby resources.
8.The UK Government’s crisis response remains heavily reliant on naval assets such as RFA Mounts Bay and HMS Ocean to provide immediate strategic support and transport capabilities. The Defence Committee has recently drawn attention to the implications of the decision to withdraw HMS Ocean from service for the UK’s ability to undertake such operations in future. The FCO should ensure that the needs of Overseas Territories, many of which are regularly vulnerable to natural disasters, are considered as part of the decisions to be made within Government about the future of the UK’s naval fleet and that assets are dedicated to the disaster response role.
9.Anguilla told us that it was not able to get clarity from the UK Government quickly about the availability and nature of crisis recovery funding. Although such funding is not wholly within the control of the FCO, as the lead department for international crisis response, and the one responsible for the Government relationship with the Overseas Territories, the FCO should seek to ensure clear Government communications and messaging on such important matters in future.
1 Q48
3 Oral evidence taken before the International Development Committee on 31 October (2017–18) HC487, Q26 [Lord Bates]
7 The French collectivity of Saint Martin is represented in the National Assembly and Senate (for instance). It is also considered by the European Union to be an outermost region of France, while Dutch Sint Maarten and Anguilla are classified as overseas countries and territories of the EU.
8 Emmanuel Macron pledges €50m to help Irma-ravaged Caribbean territories, The Guardian, 12 September 2017; Macron to visit Caribbean as France defends hurricane prep, The Chicago Tribune, 10 September 2017
9 Dutch Saint Martin’s leader quits over Hurricane Irma aid controversy, Deutsche Welle, 24 November 2017
11 UK stands by Caribbean and Overseas Territories” Department for International Development press release, 18 November 2017
13 Q11
14 For example “UK aid continues to arrive for Hurricane Irma victims” Department for International Development press release, 15 September 2017
15 Oral evidence taken before the International Development Committee on 31 October (2017–18) HC487, Q31 [Lord Bates]
18 “UK aid continues to arrive for Hurricane Irma victims” Department for International Development press release, 15 September 2017
Published: 7 March 2018