PAM Wreaks “Complete Devastation” in Vanuatu
Posted by feww on March 14, 2015
Super Cyclone PAM devastates Vanuatu islands
The category five monster cyclone smashed into Vanuatu islands in the South Pacific, wreaking “complete devastation.”
There are fears that dozens have lost their lives, and entire villages razed, in what may be one of the region’s deadliest, and most destructive weather disasters.
Super Cyclone Pam, charged with sustained winds of 275km/h, gusting up to 340 km/hr [FIRE-EARTH estimates based on blog models,] slammed directly into the island nation late Friday.
“The damage is quite extensive in Port Vila but there are so many more vulnerable islands. I can’t even imagine what it’s like in those vulnerable communities,” said an emergency communications officer with World Vision in Port Vila, citing reports that entire villages in remote areas have been destroyed.
“The scene here this morning is complete devastation – houses are destroyed, trees are down, roads are blocked and people are wandering the streets looking for help,” said Tom Skirrow of Save the Children.
“Communications are down across much of the country with the total extent of the devastation unlikely to be known for several days.”
Some 44 people may have lost their lives in Penama province in the north-east of Vanuatu, said the UN’s Office for the Co-ordination for Humanitarian Assistance (UNOCHA).
“There are destructive winds, rain, flooding, landslides, sea surges and very rough seas and the storm is exceedingly destructive there,” said Australian Foreign Minister.
“While it is too early to say for certain, early reports are indicating that this weather disaster could potentially be one of the worst in Pacific history,” said a UNICEF spokesperson.
“The sheer force of the storm combined with communities just not set up to withstand it, could have devastating results for thousands across the region.”
Related Links
- Super Cyclone PAM Devastating South Pacific Nations March 13, 2015
This entry was posted on March 14, 2015 at 11:48 am and is filed under News Alert. Tagged: 14 March 2015, coastal flooding, Cyclone PAM, Kiribati, Landslide, Mega Disaster, state of emergency, storm surge, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Vanuatu. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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Fire Earth 
George T. said
feww said
Read also the volumes of silence!
George T. said
feww said
Between the speed of light and slow motion.
Read between the lines!
Tom C said
Humanitarian crisis in Vanuatu in the aftermath of Cyclone Pam
Posted: 15 MAR 15 Written by: Oxfam Australia Media
Up to 90 per cent of housing in Vanuatu’s capital is reported to have been seriously damaged by Cyclone Pam, with still no information from the extremely vulnerable outer islands which are home to 33,000 people.
Oxfam Country Director in Port Vila, Colin Collet van Rooyen said today while six deaths have been confirmed this number is likely to climb once communities across the archipelago are reached.
“This is likely to be one of the worst disasters ever seen in the Pacific,” he said.
“The scale of humanitarian need will be enormous and the proud people of Vanuatu are going to need a lot of help to rebuild their homes and their lives.
“Entire communities have been blown away.”
https://www.oxfam.org.au/media/2015/03/humanitarian-crisis-in-vanuatu-in-the-aftermath-of-cyclone-pam/