Maila delays move on Qld, while Solomons count cost
As tropical cyclone Maila weakens again ahead of a possible approach to Queensland, Papua New Guinea is next in the firing line and the Solomon Islands are picking up the pieces.
Communities in remote parts of the Solomon Islands have been evacuated amid fears that many lack basic needs.
The slow-moving storm, the strongest ever this far north in the Solomon Sea, has been hitting the islands for several days.
“These are very remote places,” Save The Children’s country manager Tory Clawson told AAP.
“No boats or planes have been in or out for four days, so there is serious concern about food and water supplies.”
Given that the eye was between two Melanesian nations, the most destructive winds were experienced at sea.
Remote islands have been hard hit: there are reports of three people missing at sea, food shortages, and homes and crops destroyed in Western, Choiseul and Isabel Provinces.
Solomon Islands Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele gave a national address on Thursday, urging fishermen to stay off the water and communities to rally around those most affected.
According to the Solomon Star, the region’s largest hospital in Gizo is in a state of emergency and only responds to emergency cases; staff live in areas with damaged homes or landslide risk.
While storm surges cause agricultural damage, they also contaminate drinking water.
Both are disastrous, especially considering the large number of subsistence farmers and the value of produce sold in local markets.
Ms Clawson said identifying the full impacts and scale of need would now be a priority.
“Many children and families had to evacuate, often in the middle of the night,” he said.
“Just last night the 3am storm meant a community was forced to flee to higher ground.”
Mr Manele’s government has committed to a package worth A$1.76 million to address urgent humanitarian needs.
Maila was a category five system on Wednesday with wind gusts of up to 295km/h, but as of Friday afternoon it was classified as a category three system moving west towards PNG’s Milne Bay province.
The Bureau of Meteorology indicates the storm will move through the region as a category two system on Sunday, meaning peak winds of 100mph are expected.
“From Sunday Maila may track west south-west towards the Far North Queensland coast and possibly pass the Cape York Peninsula next week,” a BOM spokesman said.
Woodlark Island, one of the largest islands in PNG’s Solomon Sea, is expected to be one of the hardest hit.
The path of the hurricane will determine its strength if and when it reaches Australia; some models suggest a drop to less destructive tropical lows.
“Another possible scenario is for Maila to weaken over the weekend in or near the southeast of Papua New Guinea and not pass the Queensland coast as a tropical cyclone,” BOM said.
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