[A-DX] Vanuatu

[Wolfgang Bueschel]

Die TV Sender wie BBC, EuroNews, NHK, sowie auch deutsche Nachrichtensender 
sind seit 3 Tagen voll von Wettermeldungen aus dem Pazifik.

Vanuatu, Kiribati, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Fiji,
jetzt gehts auf die australische Küste los mit Cyclone 'Olwyn'.


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Mike Terry Sent: Saturday, March 14, 2015 12:40 PM
Subject: Re: [dxld] Dozens feared dead after Cyclone Pam hits Vanuatu
Capital FM107 is the only station in Vanuatu on my internet radio and it 
does not seem to be online.
Mike

________________________________
 From: "Mike Terry 
Subject: [dxld] Dozens feared dead after Cyclone Pam hits Vanuatu

BBC News Asia - 14 March 2015

Cyclone Pam battered Vanuatu with winds of up to 270kph (170mph).

Pictures on social media showed buildings badly damaged and trees and power
lines down.

Authorities on the islands had earlier issued a red alert to residents after
the cyclone changed direction and began moving towards populated areas.
Communications have been knocked out over a wide area and aid agencies said
on Saturday it could be several hours before a clear picture emerges.

Although thousands of people spent the night in emergency shelters, many 
more
were forced to ride out the storm in their own homes.

Pam had already caused major damage on other Pacific islands, including
Kiribati and the Solomon Islands.

Tuvalu, a group of nine tiny islands north-east of Vanuatu, has also 
declared
a state of emergency after the cyclone caused flash floods there.

"The immediate concern is for a very high death toll but also an enormous
amount of destruction and devastation," Sune Gudnitz, regional director for 
the
UN's Office for the Co-ordination for Humanitarian Assistance (UNOCHA), told
Reuters news agency from nearby Fiji, which is also expecting to be hit by 
Pam.
There were unconfirmed reports that 44 people had died in Penama province in
the north-east of Vanuatu, UNOCHA said in a statement quoted by Reuters.

The Vanuatu
Meteorological Services (VMS) said it expected torrential rainfall, flash
flooding, landslides and storm surges.

All six provinces are under red alert, meaning people are advised to
immediately head to shelter.

Vanuatu National Disaster Management Office spokesperson Mishaen Garae Lulu 
told
Radio New Zealand that the government had lost contact with some parts of
the northern provinces.

He said the cyclone was expected to be worse than Cyclone Uma, which killed
50 people in 1987.

Located about a quarter of the way from Australia to Hawaii, Vanuatu has a
population of 267,000 spread over 65 islands. About 47,000 people live in 
the
capital, Port Vila.

On Friday, Alice Clements, an official with the UN children's agency Unicef,
told the BBC that the capital had become a ghost town as people took
shelter.

"The winds have intensified and the skies have totally clouded over, you
can't see the sea or the hills now. Foliage is thrashing around and the wind 
and
rain has been torrential," she said.

"People are anxious; it's been a very long time since Vanuatu has seen a
cyclone this big."

The Vanuatu country director for Save the Children, Tom Skirrow, told the 
AFP
news agency that he was concerned about families living in shanty town
areas.

"Thousands of families are living in makeshift, flimsy houses which will not
withstand the immense winds and rain we're expecting. Families need to 
urgently
evacuate to safe buildings or the results could be catastrophic."

Meanwhile, category three Cyclone Olwyn has hit the coast of Western
Australia with wind gusts of up to 195kph (120mph).

People in the state's coastal region were warned to move to higher ground to
escape dangerous flooding.

Pacific islands: Key facts
* Vanuatu: An
archipelago of more than 80 islands, with a population estimated at 267,000
* Kiribati:
Population of just over 100,000 across 33 atolls. The capital, Tarawa, is 
about
half way between Hawaii and Australia
* Solomon Islands:
One of the poorest countries in the region that suffered from years of civil
unrest. Population of around 600,000
* Tuvalu:
A group of nine tiny, low-lying islands that are particularly vulnerable to
rising sea levels. Population of just over 10,000
* Fiji:
Popular tourist destination with a population of around 900,000. Made up of 
more
than 800 volcanic and coral islands

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-31865001