On Thursday, two days after Port Vila, the capital city of Vanuatu, was hit by a deadly 7.3 magnitude earthquake with numerous aftershocks, residents were told to prepare for heavy rains that could grow into a cyclone that would bring more destruction to the ravaged island.
Earthquakes are commonplace in the Pacific Island archipelago, but Tuesday’s temblor was exceptional. Its shaking flattened buildings, destroyed reservoirs, damaged hospitals and roads, and cut off power and telecommunications systems.
While most of the damage from the earthquake was in Port Vila, on the island of Efate, there was some damage, including landslides, in the 82 outlying islands.
The earthquake was about 30 kilometers west of the capital, at a depth of 57 kilometers.
At least 16 people have died, according to officials, but the death toll is expected to climb as emergency response teams search through the rubble for survivors and the dead. About 200 people have been treated for injuries, according to the government’s disaster management office. Australia and France have dispatched first-response teams to help with the search.
The Associated Press reported that there were “dramatic rescues of dust-covered survivors that lifted spirits on Tuesday and Wednesday,” but the prospects of similar events grow dimmer as days tick by.
According to the National Disaster Management Office, two reservoirs that supply water to the capital crumbled during the earthquake, forcing residents to stand in long lines at stores to purchase the necessity.
“People are not really concerned about electricity. They’re just concerned about water,” a Port Vila resident told AP.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said Thursday that about 80,000 people were directly affected by the earthquake, and close to 1,000 had been displaced from their homes. The international alliance has slated $1 million for Vanuatu’s immediate response efforts, including water, shelter and food.
“Make sure your family is safe,” Vanuatu President Nikenike Vurobaravu said in an address on the country’s national broadcaster’s Facebook page. “Help each other during this hard time for the nation.”
Tourists who flock to Vanuatu for its lovely beaches found themselves scrambling to secure seats on military evacuation flights that several countries organized.
Australia and New Zealand have delivered aid to the island and have been able to evacuate their citizens from the island on the aircraft that delivered the aid.
U.S. Ambassador Ann Marie Yastishock brought aid to Vanuatu, including Starlink equipment, Reuters reported.
Some information for this report came from Reuters and The Associated Press.
