Inter-island vessels dashed for shelter in Kadavu and the Yasawas as winds whipped up heavy seas, according to a The Fiji Times article on Tuesday January 18, 1977.
Kadavu islanders and coastal dwellers in south-western Viti Levu had braced themselves for 40-knot winds and many students who had planned to travel to Viti Levu in advance to prepare for the school opening had to delay their departures because no ships were available.
A Kadavu District Office spokesman at Vunisea told The Fiji Times that several passengers were stranded.
One of the inter-island vessels that called at Kadavu ports regularly, the Viking Ahoy, was sheltering from high seas in Kadavu, the spokesman said.
He said the latest report from the meteorological office in Vunisea had recorded winds at 20 knots. They were still increasing in intensity.
He said they had not received any reports of damage caused by rain and winds. There were occasional showers, and the weather was generally overcast.
The wireless operator on Yasawa-i-rara on Southern tip of the Yasawas said winds had increased to 24 knots.
He said the seas had been very rough and vessels had sought shelter in the bays scattered around the island.
Most of the vessels were sheltering in Visibuli Bay.
He said many students who had planned to travel to Viti Levu had been held back.
He said if the winds did not increase in force in three or four days most of the island’s stores would be out of food supplies.
He said boats were the only means of transporting food supplies from Viti Levu to the Yasawas.
The Natovi-Levuka ferry was also reported to have stopped running because of rough seas.
