By Kirsty Needham and Renju Jose
SYDNEY (Reuters) -People on the Pacific island nation of Vanuatu braced on Thursday for heavy rains and a possible cyclone, two days after a 7.3 magnitude earthquake killed at least 16 people, wrecked buildings and cut power and water supplies.
President Nikenike Vurobaravu told people to take particular care in areas hit by landslides. “Make sure your family is safe. Help each other during this hard time for the nation,” he said in an address on the national broadcaster’s Facebook page.
He said there was a risk of “cascading hazards”, in the form of a low pressure system moving towards Vanuatu bringing heavy rain. The Bureau of Meteorology warned there was a 10%-60% chance it would develop into a cyclone.
Australian and French rescue and medical teams joined the search for survivors in the rubble in the capital Port Vila on Thursday.
Access to the city was restricted and residents were urged to comply with a curfew as heavy machinery dug through collapsed buildings.
The president said the confirmed death toll had risen to 16, ten buildings had suffered major structural damage, and power to the water supply was being repaired.
The number of deaths and injuries was expected to rise as search and rescue continued, the National Disaster Management Office said.
The dead included a Chinese woman who ran a shop on the ground floor of a collapsed four-storey building owned by Chinese company Kenwu Industries, one of the company’s workers, Michael Mai, said.
She was one of two Chinese nationals the Chinese embassy said were killed, he told Reuters. “She was near to the building, very close when it collapsed,” he said.
A French national, Vincent Goiset, died under another collapsed building in the city centre, France’s Ambassador Jean-Baptiste Jeangène Vilmer said.
Police said a medical centre at Cook Barracks had treated 150 patients, alleviating pressure on Vila Central Hospital.
TOURISTS SCRAMBLE FOR FLIGHTS
Hundreds of tourists at resorts across the islands scrambled to find seats on military evacuation flights organised by Australia, New Zealand and France.
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Australia would help Vanuatu restore operations at the international airport in Port Vila, which has been closed to commercial airlines because of damage.
About 150 Australian citizens returned home overnight on the two aircraft that delivered assistance, Wong said. Around 500 Australians had registered for help, and two more repatriation flights were expected on Thursday.
Other countries have also offered support, with the U.S. Ambassador Ann Marie Yastishock arriving from Papua New Guinea with aid including Starlink equipment, and Fiji and Papua New Guinea saying they would send defence force contingents.
A Royal New Zealand Air Force Hercules arrived in Port Vila with rescue equipment and medics on Thursday, and will assist with the evacuation of New Zealanders, New Zealand officials said.
Disruptions to power and communication were hindering rescue efforts, and the U.N. children’s agency UNICEF has said water contamination was a major concern.
International internet access is limited to satellite services because of damage to Vanuatu’s subsea cable landing station, authorities said.
(Reporting by Kirsty Needham and Renju Jose in Sydney; Editing by Sandra Maler, Lincoln Feast and Andrew Heavens)
