Cyclone PAM: “Entire communities have been blown away”

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Super Cyclone PAM probably caused “one of the worst disasters ever seen in the Pacific”

Up to 90 per cent of homes in Vanuatu’s capital Port Villa has reportedly  been seriously damaged by Super Cyclone PAM, leaving “most” of the population homeless, with no information available yet as to the fate of more than 33,000 people who live on the extremely vulnerable outer islands. 

“This is likely to be one of the worst disasters ever seen in the Pacific,” said Oxfam Country Director in Port Vila, Colin Collet van Rooyen.

“Entire communities have been blown away.”

Cyclone PAM made a direct hit on Vanuatu island late Friday, plowing through the archipelago of 65 islands [pop. ~ 270,000] with supercharged force.

“With more than 250,000 people at risk from the severe tropical cyclone there is real concern of a potentially high death toll and of enormous destruction, particularly given the traditional housing that is so prevalent through the islands,” said the report.

“Cyclone Pam has destroyed all but one of mobile towers in Port Vila so no comms between Efate and both nth and sth provinces,” said a UNICEF employee. Read more…

Tuvalu, Kiribati, Solomon Islands

Meantime, Tuvalu’s prime minister has declared a state of emergency, after the deadly cyclone caused widespread flash floods, severely affecting about half of his nation’s population.

The cyclone has also flattened homes, flooded fields and destroyed crops in Kiribati and the Solomon Islands, affecting thousands of families, said reports.

• Hospital, morgue and schools all damaged by Cyclone Pam
• Stories of devastation from Vanuatu in the aftermath of Cyclone Pam

FIRE-EARTH Links

• PAM Wreaks “Complete Devastation” in Vanuatu March 14, 2015
• Super Cyclone PAM Devastating South Pacific Nations March 13, 2015

PAM Wreaks “Complete Devastation” in Vanuatu

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

Super Cyclone PAM Devastating South Pacific Nations

PAM bearing down on Vanuatu after devastating several South Pacific nations

PAM a SUPERCHARGED category five tropical storm, is bearing down on Vanuatu after causing destruction in several South Pacific nations, including Kiribati, the Solomon Islands, and Tuvalu.

Vanuatu authorities issued a red alert nationwide, after the cyclone moved closer and was expected to hit the capital, Port Vila, Friday night.

Meantime, the Vanuatu Meteorological Services (VMS) issued the following warning:

At 12:00am local time, Severe Tropical Cyclone PAM was located at 17.8 degrees South 168.7 degrees East. This is about 45km east of Port Vila and 105km north northwest of Erromango. Severe Tropical  Cyclone PAM moved in a south direction at 17 km/hr in the past 3 hours.

The central pressure of the system is estimated at 900 hPa. Winds close to the centre are estimated at 250 km/hr. Severe Tropical Cyclone PAM is forecast to be at 20.2 degrees South 169.2 degrees East within the next 06 to 12 hours.

Very Destructive Hurricane Force winds of 255 km/hr is affecting SHEFA, MALAMPA and PENAMA provinces and slowly extending to TAFEA province.

Destructive Storm Force winds of 120 km/hr will continue to affect SANMA and TORBA provinces, slowly decreasing to gale force winds of 75 km/hr as the system moves further southward.

Very Destructive winds and very rough to phenomenal seas with heavy swells is affecting TORBA, PENAMA, SANMA, MALAMPA, SHEFA and TAFEA provinces. Heavy to torrential rainfalls and flooding, including flash flooding are expected over low lying areas and areas close to the river banks. Landslide is also expected. Coastal flooding from storm surge is expected near and along the coastal areas.

State of Emergency in Tuvalu

PAM has already caused flash flooding in the island nation of Tuvalu, located midway between Hawaii and Australia, forcing the authorities to declare a state of emergency.

The cyclone has also flattened homes, flooded fields and destroyed crops in Kiribati and the Solomon Islands, affecting thousands of families, said reports.

*//

IRENE’s Legacy

USDA Declares Rhode Island Agricultural Disaster Area

The entire state of Rhode Island, which includes five counties, has been  designated as natural disaster areas due to losses caused by Tropical Storm Irene on Aug. 26-28, 2011, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported.

READ THIS FIRST

Continued hacking and content censorship

In view of the continued hacking and censorship of this blog by the Internet Mafia, the Moderators have decided to maintain only a minimum presence at this site, until further notice.

FIRE-EARTH will continue to update the 2011 Disaster Calendar for the benefit of its readers.

WordPress is HACKING this blog!

WordPress Continues to Hack Fire-Earth, Affiliated Blogs

The Blog Moderators Condemn in the Strongest Possible Terms the Continued Removal of Content and Hacking of FIRE-EARTH and Affiliated Blogs by WordPress!

United States of Censorship

Even Twitter Counters are disabled when Blog posts criticize Obama, or contain “forbidden phrases.”  See also: Google’s Top 10 List of ‘Holy Cows’

Disaster Calendar 2011 – October 7

[October 7, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,622 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Rhode Island, USA. The entire state of Rhode Island, which includes five counties, has been  designated as natural disaster areas due to losses caused by Tropical Storm Irene on Aug. 26-28, 2011, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported.
• The following counties in Connecticut and Massachusetts were added to the disaster list because they are contiguous:
• Connecticut: New London and Windham counties
• Massachusetts: Bristol, Norfolk and Worcester counties
• Connecticut, USA. Seven counties in the state of Connecticut have been designated as primary and contiguous Natural Disaster Areas by USDA.
• The designation follows losses caused by Tropical Storm Irene on Aug. 28-29, 2011.
• The following counties in Massachusetts, New York and Rhode Island weer also declared as natural disaster areas because they are contiguous:
• Massachusetts:  Berkshire, Hampden and Worcester
• New York. Dutchess, Putnam and Westchester
• Rhode Island: Kent, Providence, Washington

Other Disasters

• Listeria Outbreak, USA. At least 21 people have died and 109 others sickened in 23 states in the listeriosis outbreak linked to tainted Colorado cantaloupes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
• The deaths have occurred in Colorado (5), New Mexico (5), Kansas (2), Texas(2), and 1 each in Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, Oklahoma, and Wyoming.

• Texas, USA. The following table is a wildfire damage update provided by Texas Forrest Service (TFS)

YTD Texas wildfire stats by TFS as of October 7, 2011. [The acreage  burnt includes about 3.1 million acres of pasture land.]

• Funafuti, Tuvalu (Pacific Ocean). The world’s fourth-smallest nation located  south of the Equator, has declared a state of emergency because it is running out of water.
• Tuvalu, a cluster of small islands about 3,200 km NE of NZ, has a combined land mass of 25 sq km with its highest point rising just 5m above sea level.
• The islands have a population of just over 10,000 on nine sinking atolls.
• Tokelau islands. The 1,400  or so residents of Tokelau islands (colonial name:  The Union Islands) are also left with very little drinking water.
• The islands consist of 3 tropical coral atolls with a total land mass of 10 km², located north of the Samoan Islands and east of Tuvalu.
• The two island nations depend on rain for their drinking water. The ongoing La Nina has caused a severe drought in the past six months.

Related Links

• Out of the sinking pan, into the fire!
• Good Bye, Tuvalu!

• 2011 Disaster Calendar – September
• 2011 Much More Disastrous: FIRE-EARTH Forecast
• Global Disasters in 2011 Could Impact 1/3 to 1/2 of the Human Population  (FIRE-EARTH Forecast)
• Back to the Primordial Future
• Mass Die-offs  (FIRE-EARTH Forecast)

• The First Wave of World’s Collapsing Cities  (EDRO Forecast)
• 2011 Disaster Calendar – August
• 2010 Disaster Calendar 
• 2011 Disaster Calendar

Out of the sinking pan, into the fire!

Global Warming Tolls the Death Knell for Tuvalu

Massive tides, high winds and rising sea levels are causing erosion to the four reef islands and five true atolls that comprise the tiny country of Tuvalu.

Map of Tuvalu

Formerly known as the Ellice Islands, the low-lying Polynesian islands are located in the Pacific Ocean midway between Hawaii and Australia. The nine-island cluster contains 600 sq km of ocean, but only a total of 25 sq km of land.

Tuvaluans reaching end of the road. (AP Yonhap). Image may be subject to copyright!

“The residents of Tepuka Savilivili, an island 10 kilometers away from Funafuti, also sense the crisis. One day in 1997, an uninhabited island simply vanished. The residents explained that gale winds blew and covered the island during the night. The next day, the coconut trees had vanished.” Wrote Nam Jong-yeong.

Drinking water is mixing with salty ocean water; the coconut trees are vanishing; during high tides seawater covers most parts of the islands.

Thousands of Tuvaluans have already left the shrinking islands, most of them arriving in what they believe to be a safe destination: New Zealand.

Their new home, however, could breakup and sink in the south-western Pacific Ocean as a result of massive earthquakes. It’s rather like jumping out of the frying pan into the fire!

Related Links:

• Will one or both of New Zealand islands break up and sink …