Bukama villagers in Northern Yasawa helped evacuate guests from Yasawa Island Resort as Severe Tropical Cyclone Vaianu tracked between Fiji and Vanuatu yesterday.
Former village headman Taniela Sau said preparations began on Sunday, with the decision to evacuate guests taken on Monday. Villagers assisted staff members in transporting visitors to Viti Levu, while some resort workers remained behind along with villagers preparing their homes.
“Others who live in the village did not go to work today and everyone has been at home preparing for the cyclone,” Mr Sau said.
An evacuation centre was activated, but most residents stayed in their homes. There has been minor damage, mainly fallen tree branches. Mr Sau expressed concern for the village plantations, which sustained significant damage, though the full impact will be known once winds subside.
“People’s lives are important, so we did not leave anything to the last minute. Everyone was ready from Monday.”
As Tropical Cyclone Vaianu intensified into a Category 3 system early yesterday morning, its outer rainbands lashed the Western Division, leaving a trail of rising floodwaters and structural damage across Nadi and Lautoka.
Despite the storm’s centre remaining offshore, its proximity triggered widespread flash flooding, with the Nadi Bus Station submerged and the Nawaka River bursting its banks, forcing emergency evacuations in nearby villages.
In Lautoka and surrounding districts, residents have reported downed trees, power outages, and damage to weaker corrugated iron and timber structures as gusts reaching up to 90 km/h continue to batter the coast.
With schools and the University of the South Pacific’s Lautoka Campus closed, authorities remain on high alert as the slow-moving system threatens to bring even more prolonged rainfall and landslides through Wednesday.
