Cyclone Pam Flattens Vanuatu: Rescue Teams Report Devastation; Official Death Toll Lowered

How to Help with Vanuatu's Disaster Relief Effort 

Rescue teams and relief workers made their way to Vanuatu's outer islands Tuesday after struggling to reach the devastated archipelago's worst-hit areas. 

Aid from Australia and New Zealand is welcomed as Vanuatu's residents say they're running out of vital supplies.

"We are running short of food, water, shelter and electricity," resident Ropate Vuso told Reuters. 

This weekend, cyclone Pam lashed Vanuatu and caused widespread damage. With communications down and the islands in a scramble, officials were unable to gather accurate information. 

A death count from the U.N. was lowered to 11 from 24 Tuesday after officials realized they counted someone people twice, the Associated Press reports. 

At least 3,300 people in Vanuatu were left homeless Monday as aid began to arrive from nearby Australia and New Zealand, the U.N. confirmed. 

In Vanuatu's capital Port Vila, Oxfam Australia says that up to 90% of housing has been damaged, including vital supplies of food and water. 

Aerial surveys of the island nation continued Tuesday and found extreme damage across the archipelago's islands. 

"We understand that the reconnaissance imagery shows widespread devastation," Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said. "Not only buildings flattened - palm plantations, trees. It's quite a devastating sight."

Vanuatu's president Baldwin Lonsdale was attending a U.N. disaster in Japan when the cyclone struck and spoke to the Associated Press. 

"This is a very devastating cyclone in Vanuatu. I term it as a monster, a monster," Lonsdale said. "It's a setback for the government and for the people of Vanuatu. After all the development that has taken place, all this development has been wiped out."

Tom Skirrow, country director of Save the Children Australia, described the utter devastation in Port Vila to Reuters, "People are wandering the streets looking for help."

The full picture of Pam's impacts, including the final death toll, may not be known for what aid workers say may be days or even weeks. 

The Vanuatu Red Cross headed its response by preliminarily assessing the damage in Port Vila and other affected areas Sunday, according to a press release. Emergency crews are mobilizing to help those in need and will provide shelter, food, water and first aid. Augustine Garae, head of disaster management for the organization, noted, "The humanitarian needs are enormous. We know there has been widespread destruction and many people have lost their homes."  

Now that Port Vila's airport has been reopened, military flights out of New Zealand and Australia are bringing in water and medical supplies to Vanuatu with contributions from France and the United States. 

Reuters reporters that Australia has also sent a medical assistance to Port Vila to assist the sparse teams already on the ground. 

According to the Associated Press, Port Vila's hospital was evacuated because officials feared the building could collapse. 

The Red Cross will be joined by The Pacific Humanitarian Team, UNICEF and UNHCR in its efforts to help those affected by Pam, according to a report out of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. A United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination team will assist the Vanuatu government with response coordination. 

All told, Australia, New Zealand and Britain have promised a combined total over $8 million in aid, Reuters says. 

Chloe Morrison, a World Vision emergency communications officer, told the Associated Press toppled roofs, uprooted trees and downed power lines filled Port Vila's streets. Morrison also noted there were reports of remote villages being wholly destroyed. 

Morrison also said Pam left Port Vila without power or running water and noted, "The damage is quite extensive in Port Vila, but there are so many more vulnerable islands. I can't even imagine what it's like in those vulnerable communities." 

Vanuatu instituted a curfew from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. to discourage looting as the food supply dwindles. 

Communication across Vanuatu's numerous islands is largely shut off and bridges outside of the capital are down, complicating travel. 

"The wards have all been evacuated because of structural damage," surgeon Richard Leona told Australia's Channel 7. "We are badly needing this help. We need to get an urgent drug supply and food and also set up a mobile hospital to deal with the influx of patients coming in."

And with so many of Vanuatu's citizens living in housing built from light materials, like straw or corrugated metals, emergency aid workers fear the worst in terms of damage. 

"We haven't been able to communicate outside Port Vila," National Disaster Management Office coordinator Paolo Malatu . "At this point, the damage is severe and we haven't had figures of how many houses destroyed. ... It's really bad, it's really bad."

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Pam began clobbering Vanuatu's northernmost province, Torba, late Thursday night, and at least 300 people were forced to evacuate.

The large storm lashed the country's multiple islands with fierce winds that rocked even the steadiest of structures, the BBC reported. 

In a recent study, Port Vila was found to be the world's most exposed city to natural disasters, according to the Australian Broadcasting Company.

Before slamming Vanuatu, Pam affected around 3,000 households in the nearby Solomon Islands and Kiribati, destroying homes and flooding crop areas, said the BBC. Pam also caused flash flooding in the island nation of Tuvalu.

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