Governor Franklyn Richards on Wednesday morning spoke with both Dutch Representatives in St. Maarten and in Curacao, namely Lars Walrave and Rob Vermaas, about the developing situation in Haiti and appealing to them for Dutch assistance.
Governor Richards also spoke with Prime Minister of the Netherlands Antilles Emily De Jongh Elhage on Wednesday afternoon with respect to the developing situation in Haiti and what type of assistance could be provided by the Central Government.
Castin Ironce, a representative of the St. Maarten Haitian Community, visited Governor Richards on Wednesday afternoon where they discussed the situation regarding Haiti and the St. Maarten Haitian community.
Governor Richards also spoke with Antillean Minister of Home & Constitutional Affairs Roland Duncan regarding Haiti.
In the meantime Dutch Minister of Development Cooperation Bert Koenders announced on Wednesday that preparations are underway to send a Dutch Urban Search & Rescue Team to Haiti.
The team comprises of 60 persons along with search dogs to search for missing persons who have been buried under the rubble caused by the magnitude 7.0 earthquake.
The Dutch team will make-up part of an international coordinated effort under the leadership of the United Nations. The team was expected to leave Holland Wednesday night from Eindhoven on a transport aircraft made available by the Dutch Ministry of Defence.
Dutch Minister Koenders has also made available two million Euro in emergency aid.
"Nations around the world are mobilizing resources to aid Haiti after Tuesday’s catastrophic earthquake that has left a lot of destruction in the capital city of Port-au-Prince.
"The full extent of casualties is still unknown. This is a major humanitarian emergency and we continue to offer our prayers to our brethren during this difficult period," Governor Franklyn Richards told the Government Information Service (GIS).