France President, Emmanuel Macron travelled to the Caribbean Islands on Tuesday evening in the French territory of Saint Martin amidst looting and lawlessness that sprung up from the remains of Hurricane Irma in the French-Dutch territory, The Local reports.

Macron while speaking in Guadeloupe earlier said, “government began preparing one of the biggest airlifts since World War II” days before Irma hit last Wednesday.

“Now is not the time for controversy. Returning life to normal is the absolute priority,” he said.

While touring Saint Martin, Macron was greeted with different responses. Some jeered him in anticipation of aid supplies or hoping to catch flights for France to escape the devastation across the island.

A woman amidst the crowd waiting to be lifted to France said, “We’ve been here since six in the morning and we’re still waiting, under a blazing sun”, while another woman asked: “Why are you here?”

In response, Macron said, “everybody who wants to leave will be able to”, while a record from officials disclosed that about 2,000 of the 35,000 residents on the French side of Saint Martin had left the Island in the wake of Irma.

Meanwhile, a mother picking up her daughter, a survivor who flew to Paris on Monday, said with condition of anonymity that government help was non-existent on Saint Martin.

“They gave us phone numbers but they didn’t work. Only social media and solidarity worked,” she said.

“People were left to their own devices. They had to set up militias and take turns defending themselves against looters. All the gangs came to the French side… with guns and machetes. It’s unbelievably chaotic,” she added.

Adegbite Adedotun