Hurricane Irma has caused "huge damage" to St Martin, devastating its airport and port and leaving the Dutch part of the Caribbean island unreachable, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said Thursday.

"Alas, the island is not reachable at this point because of the huge damage to the airport and the harbour," Rutte told reporters, though he added there were no reports of deaths on the Dutch side so far. French authorities say at least nine lives have been lost on the French side