Solomon Island declared in State of Emergency
The government of Solomon Islands has declared a state of emergency in the wake of yesterday’s devastating tsunami, with local officials reporting as many as 20 people were killed and hundreds or even thousands are still missing as a three-metre wall of water swept through seaside villages, also warning that the death toll is likely to rise.
Western Province premier Alex Lokopio said up to 4,000 people spent the night in hills on the worst-hit island of Gizo, warning on ABC Radio, “For the next three days or four days, if there is not anything coming from Honiara or any other parts of the world, there are people here in Gizo who will be sitting down underneath the trees for day and night”.
An assessment team of government officials and Red Cross workers has been sent to the region to determine what kind of humanitarian assistance is needed and a government patrol boat has also arrived, bringing food, water, medical supplies and emergency shelters to assist local authorities deal with the aftermath of the tsunami.
Australian and New Zealand personnel working with the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomons are expected to assist the relief operations.
Solomons Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare says the situation would have been far worse if the tsunami had struck at night, adding, “We were lucky in that it happened during the daytime and the people observed that the sea receded, and most people have taken to higher ground.”
United Nations secretary-general Ban Ki-moon says a UN team is ready to travel to the stricken South Pacific state, adding, “The secretary-general is deeply concerned by the potential consequences of the earthquake and tsunami that hit the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has a team ready to deploy to the Solomon Islands and has offered assistance to the Government.”
Report by The Mole
John Alwyn-Jones
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