Guernsey man stuck in Sri Lanka by the Iran war

Thursday, 5 March 2026 12:05

Former deputy Peter Roffey is staying near Galle, not far from the waters where the US sunk an Iranian frigate.

Peter Roffey has visited Sri Lanka many times and was injured there by the Boxing Day Tsunami in 2006.

This trip began last month and he was due to fly back to Guernsey earlier this week, after the Americans and Israelis began their war against Iran.

Peter Roffey is in the south of the island near Galle, and it is off here, but in international waters, that a US submarine torpedoed and sank an Iranian Navy frigate.

"I'm very much in the area where it happened, but it happened quite a few miles off the coast, so it wasn't something you could see happening from the shore."

But, he has been monitoring the local media:

"They're more focusing on the role of the Sri Lankan Navy in rescuing those people that did survive, who are apparently seriously injured, and recovering the bodies.

"They felt absolutely obliged to go to the rescue of the Iranian ship and its crew."

Like many thousands of people, Peter Roffey's travel plans are disrupted by the war as he was supposed to leave Sri Lanka earlier this week.

"I'm meant to be flying back with Emirates via Dubai, which is still receiving some incoming ballistic missiles.

"They are operating a handful of flights and they say they are going to review it again next Sunday.

"I have provisionally re-booked for the beginning of the following week but I've no idea if that'll actually happen."

However, he sees the positive side of it:

"Meanwhile, I'm stuck on a tropical beach which really is dreadful!

"Obviously, I do want to get home, the end of my holiday had come and not knowing when you are going to get home is annoying.

"But it's not like those stuck in Dubai, there's no danger here at all, it's just frustrating."

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