Hundreds of American medical students stranded in Dominica

American students were reportedly stranded on Friday in Dominica after Hurricane Maria leveled the Caribbean island.

The Ross University School of Medicine, as of Friday, was "working tirelessly" to find all of its colleagues and students located on the island after the storm hit last Monday.

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"We have confirmed three boats have left Dominica this morning at 10:30 a.m. ET to evacuate the first group of more than 140 students and colleagues," the school told Fox News. "Depending on sea conditions, the trip is expected to take between five to eight hours to arrive at St. Lucia as a stopover departure point to the US mainland."

The U.S. State Department was also reportedly sending ships to the island to assist with the removal.

Dominica is located 400 miles southeast of Puerto Rico, the island currently at risk of going months without power after Maria. Maria is the second major hurricane to hit the Caribbean this month.