Andrew Macalister, New Zealand Red Cross
Fiji Red Cross staff and volunteers have led the response to a devastating storm that struck the Pacific nation last week, killing at least ten people with several more still missing.
The tropical storm brought heavy rainfall and 90km/h winds to central areas of Fiji’s largest island, Viti Levu, causing landslides and flooding in low-lying areas. In the worst fatal incident, a landslide pushed a bus carrying five people into the flooded Wainibuka River, north of Suva.
According to Fiji’s National Emergency Operations Centre, about 10,000 people have been directly affected by the storm, through extensive damage to infrastructure, crops and households.
“With the tropical cyclone season almost over, we had been hoping that Fiji would escape any major natural disasters this season,” said Fiji Red Cross Director-General Alison Cupit. “However, this storm has changed that, bringing a real dampener to Easter holiday celebrations.”
On the evening of Thursday 8 April, just hours after the storm had struck, Fiji Red Cross branch volunteers were providing immediate assistance in the field and at evacuation centres.
The following morning, teams of assessors and first aiders were deployed from the capital of Suva and northern town of Rakiraki to determine on-going needs and provide assistance where required. With many areas cut off by floodwaters, the staff and volunteers often had to make their way to affected communities by foot through thick mud and waist-deep water.
By Monday, Fiji Red Cross had distributed non-food relief supplies to more than 3,800 beneficiaries, using stocks stored in pre-positioned disaster preparedness containers in Suva, Rakraki, Nalawa and Tavua.
As well as distributing relief supplies, staff and volunteers also treated many minor cuts and wounds caused by the landslides. Most injuries were to the feet of villagers, as sharp objects and broken glass were imbedded in the thick mud. Many villages were also left without dispensaries as most had been washed away at the height of the flooding.
There is a continuing high risk of water-borne diseases in the affected area, due to the flooding of pit latrines in most of these villages and settlements.
The relief effort had one unexpected benefit, said Ms. Cupit. “Many of the rural communities visited during this relief exercise are normally inaccessible, so it provided a wonderful opportunity to spread the message on HIV/AIDS at the same time, through a leaflet that provides answers to ‘The Most Frequently Asked questions about AIDS’.”
Fiji Government officials are presently working to determine medium-term recovery and rehabilitation needs, but already the Information Minister, Simione Kaitani, has singled out the Red Cross for praise in their rapid response to the disaster.