T&T nationals in Japan safe

Foreign Affairs Minister Dr Surujrattan Rambachan has been trying to locate Trinidad and Tobago nationals in Japan to determine if they are safe or need assistance following the 8.9 point earthquake and tsunami which hit on Friday, killing hundreds and leaving a trail of devastation.

Howver, the Trinidad Guardian reported on Saturday that it contacted Japanese Ambassador to Port-of-Spain Tatsuaki Iwata who stated that all 25 T&T nationals on teaching programs there have been accounted for.

Rambachan confirmed that most of the T&T citizens in Japan are English teachers; some are students. 

He said the Trinidad and Tobago High commission in London and the Jamaican embassy in Tokyo are assisting his ministry in trying to locate the citizens and ensure that they are OK.

Speaking in Parliament, Rambachan said he first issued a public appeal on national radio for the families of nationals in Japan to contact his ministry.

“What we have had to do today is make a public appeal this morning to families who have relatives in Japan. And we received about ten calls for the day from families here,” he said, adding that he also sent personal e-mails.

Rambachan said the disaster “tells us how vulnerable we are in the Caribbean. Imagine if we have an earthquake here of that magnitude, what will happen to us."


For more on the disaster visit the BBC