They're alive: how islanders cheated death by cyclone

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Johnson Honimae in Honiara Saturday January 4, 2003 The Guardian

When Cyclone Zoe battered the eastern Solomon Islands on Sunday and all radio contact was lost, it was feared that hundreds of people had perished as 190 mph winds swept the remote south Pacific.

Yet a photographer who was among the first to reach the largest of the affected islands, Tikopia, has reported that all the inhabitants appear to have survived by fleeing to ancient mountain shelters.

"The whole way there I thought I would see hundreds of dead and festering bodies, but instead we were just overwhelmed with people running toward the plane," Geoff Mackley told The Weekend Australian after landing on Tikopia by helicopter.

"Every single person was alive and there they were, standing in front of me."

The situation on Anuta and other islands hammered by the cyclone is unclear.

Relief supplies were finally on their way to the area last night as the government of the Solomon Islands, a former British colony 1,900 miles north-east of Australia, declared the area a disaster zone.

Tikopia islanders, living in about 21 villages, have a long history of coping with cyclones. They said they had survived by fleeing to mountain hideouts along paths their ancestors had used for centuries during cyclones.

But they told Mr Mackley that their homes and crops were ruined and they would not be able to grow all the food they needed for at least the next three years.

The paper also said their last water supply had been contaminated by salt water.

-- Anonymous, January 04, 2003

Answers

"They are collecting water from green coconuts, but obviously that's not very good for them," Mr Mackley said. "They used communal toilets which were basically holes in the ground, so now there's a risk of disease."

As criticism mounted about the slow response to the disaster, a patrol boat set off on the 600-mile, two-day journey from the Solomon Islands capital, Honiara, on Thursday.

The Solomon Islands home affairs minister, Clement Rojumana, said a disaster declaration allowed the government to appeal for help.

The former colony of 450,000 people, which is bankrupt and dependent on foreign aid, has struggled to respond to the disaster because of lack of funds and the sheer distances involved. There are no airstrips in the affected area.

The departure of a boat carrying food, water, temporary shelters and a medical team was held up by a series of disputes. The boat only left after the government agreed to pay police crew members a special allowance of A$1,250 (£442) each. More supplies will be sent today, using a requisitioned commercial ship today.

Australia and New Zealand have voluntarily agreed to donate money to support relief efforts.

-- Anonymous, January 04, 2003


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