Cyclone Zoe - Preparations and Impact

Preparations and Impact

Early on December 26, both RSMC Nadi and TCWC Brisbane started to issue warnigns to support the meteorological services of Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands in tracking the cyclone. TCWC Brisbane cancelled their advisories for the Solomon Islands, late on December 29 while RSMC Nadi continued to issue advisories for Vanuatu until early the next day. Due to a number of problems with the Solomon Islands Weather Service, such as the rent not being paid on the offices they were working out of and the supply of electricity being unreliable, TCWC Brisbane sent the first advisory directly to the Solomon Islands Broadcasting Corporation (SIBC), so they could broadcast them through its network. These were broadcast in English only. After confirmation that the warnings were being received by the SIBC, TCWC Brisbane started to pass warnings to them every 3 hours. The next day Radio Australia was contacted so that arrangements could be made for them to receive and broadcast the warnings. Initial concerns that warning messages had not gotten through arose because there was no two-way radio communication with people on either Tikopia or Anuta, thus authorities had no way of knowing what information people had received and no other way of informing them. However when communications were restored after the cyclone threat had passed it was discovered that some of the warnings had been received when a shortwave reception was available at various times, until late on December 27 when communications were cut. Those people who could not understand the warnings, were advised by runners who went from hut to hut and to churches to advise people about the oncoming storm, People started preparing straight away cutting Palm fronds and banana trunks in an attempt to support and strengthen roofs and walls. Celebrations to celebrate the new year were cancelled, or moved into communal huts with people sheltering indoors. There were no attempts to evacuate until Zoe had become so intense that dwellings were threatened with imminent inundation or had begun to break up.

Although Zoe never met large land masses, it did affect several inhabited islands which had a total population of around 1700.

The most severe damage wrought by Zoe took place on Tikopia which was completely decimated. Across Tikopia, no home was left standing after 12 m (39 ft) waves along with 320 km/h (200 mph) winds battered the small island. According to press reports, the island was faced with total devastation and all that remained was "just sand and debris." Five days after the storm struck, there were fears of substantial loss of life as no contact had been made with the hardest hit islands. A photographer who took images of the devastation from the air, stated that it would be a miracle if there was not a large loss of life.

On Anuta 90% of houses remained intact, and 70% of crops undamaged. Communication was lost with the island for a week. Vanuatu was inundated with seawater with villagers collecting fish from their village greens. No damage was reported on Fiji with a maximum sustained wind of 33 kn (61 km/h) at Yasawa, and a gust of 40 kn (74 km/h) at Nadi.