Above: An image captured by NASA of Hurricane Irma over the Leeward Islands on September 06, 2017 at 1:35 a.m. EDT. Image courtesy NOAA/NASA Goddard Rapid Response Team.

With the potential threat of Hurricane Irma on several islands across the Caribbean, Digicel today announced that it is providing its customers in the affected markets with free call credit to communicate with their loved ones throughout the hurricane.

From last night, customers’ accounts in Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, The British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Haiti, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis and the Turks and Caicos Islands have been credited with US$10 local Anywhere Minutes to call friends and family on any local network over the next 48 hours.

“We understand the need to be able to quickly reach out to our loved ones to ensure they are safe throughout a disaster and we are happy to provide our customers with the means to do so,” said Vanessa Slowey, CEO Digicel Caribbean and Central America. “Importantly, the safety and security of our customers is always our first priority and so we encourage everyone to stay up to date with weather alerts and stay safe during the storm.”

As early as Monday, Digicel activated its activated its crisis management and contingency planning in light of Hurricane Irma to ensure that everything is in place to best manage events of the coming days. “We have mobilised our teams and field engineers so we can act immediately. They are working around the clock and doing everything humanly possible to ensure that all our cell sites across our markets are in good order and ready to go,” added Slowey.

Hurricane Irma is said to be the strongest storm ever recorded in the Atlantic outside of the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico. The storm is reported to have maintained its 185-mph winds after making its first landfall on Barbuda early Wednesday morning.

Digicel said it will continue to provide updates via its social media pages and the media in terms of recovery support and office closure in affected markets.