India evacuates nationals, sets up helpline as 'life-threatening' Irma batters US

New Delhi: Indian missions in the US on Sunday evacuated scores of Indian-Americans and issued helpline numbers as the Hurricane Irma, with windspeeds of over 130kmph, battered Florida, turning its cities into ghost towns.

The hurricane was upgraded overnight to a Category Four storm as it closed in on Florida Keys. Six million people — one third of the state's population — have been ordered to evacuate their homes ahead of the monster storm.

Thousands of Indian-Americans in Florida braced for "life-threatening" Irma as it hit the state after leaving a trail of destruction across the Caribbean.

Irma has already left at least 25 dead in the Caribbean. About 60 Indian nationals were evacuated from the island of St Martin in the Caribbean.

Some 120,000 Indian-Americans reportedly live in Florida.

The Indian embassy in the US has opened a 24X7 helpline number and rushed senior diplomats to lead relief efforts for Indian-Americans stuck in the region.

The hotline number is 202-258-8819.

Citing embassy officials, the Times of India reported that India's Ambassador to the US Navtej Sarna was closely monitoring the situation.

India's consul-general in New York Sandeep Chakravorty has set up a 24X7 control room in Atlanta to oversee relief efforts.

The Indian Consulate in Atlanta tweeted helpline numbers (+14044052567 & +1678179393) for people seeking assistance. "Atlanta is fully prepared to take care of evacuees from Florida. Some have already reached. Consulate is on call 24x7," TOI quoted the Indian Consulate as saying.

External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted 24X7 helpline at High Commission of India, Kingston (+1876 833 4500; +1876 564 1378).

He also tweeted email ids for Indians to contact in case of emergency: hc.kingston@mea.gov.in; hoc.kingston@mea.gov.in.

Several Indian businesses have also started contributing to relief efforts, TOI reported.

The deteriorating weather had grounded aircraft and prevented boats from getting relief to hard-hit islands.

The US military was mobilizing thousands of troops and deploying several large ships to aid with evacuations and humanitarian relief.