Nine years ago this week, Tropical Cyclone (TC) Winston, an extremely destructive Category 5 cyclone, struck Fiji.
TC Winston was the first Category 5 cyclone to directly impact Fiji and the most intense cyclone on record to affect the country.
Koro, Ovalau and Taveuni Islands were the first to be struck, sustaining severe damage.
TC Winston swept across the country, reaching its peak strength shortly before making landfall near Rakiraki.
Maximum average wind speeds reached 233km/hour and wind gusts peaked at around 306km/hour.
There were reports of sea inundation almost 200 meters inland in some areas.
TC Winston impacted 540,400 people, equivalent to 62 percent of the country’s total population.
There was massive damage around the country.
44 people died.
Government revealed 30,369 houses, 495 schools and 88 health clinics and medical facilities were damaged or destroyed.
In addition, the cyclone destroyed crops on a large scale and compromised the livelihoods of almost 60 percent of Fiji’s population.
