Cyclone Pam: Vanuatu Devastation 'Apocalyptic'

Officials fear the number of dead may rise as the first flights carrying aid reach Vanuatu where thousands are homeless.The president of a Pacific island nation devastated by a tropical cyclone says he "fears the worst" as the first aid teams reached the disaster zone.

At least 10 people were killed after the fierce storm, bringing winds of more than 185mph, struck Vanuatu, levelling homes, smashing up boats, destroying roads and bridges, and bringing down power and phone lines.
And the number of dead is expected to rise as rescuers reach the outlying islands.

Thousands have been left homeless on the tiny archipelago.A Red Cross spokesman has described the situation as apocalyptic.Vanuatu's government has declared a state of emergency.
President Baldwin Lonsdale, who happened to be at a disaster risk conference in Japan, compared the storm to a monster.
He said most houses in the capital Port Vila had been damaged or destroyed by Cyclone Pam.

 President Lonsdale said the impact would be "the very, very, very worst" in isolated outer islands but held out hope the number of casualties would be "minor".He had earlier made a tearful appeal for international assistance.
Aid workers were particularly concerned about the southern island of Tanna, about 125 miles south of the capital, Port Vila.

An official with the Australian Red Cross said an aircraft had managed to land there and confirmed "widespread destruction".
"Virtually every building that is not concrete has been flattened," the official said.Witnesses in Port Vila described sea surges of up to 26 feet and widespread flooding.

Residents said the storm sounded like a freight train. with Port Vila strewn with debris.

Vanuatu president lonsdale in tears

Formerly known as the New Hebrides, Vanuatu is made up of 83 islands and 260,000 people, lying around 1,250 miles northeast of the Australian city of Brisbane.
It is among the world's poorest countries and is vulnerable to natural disasters including earthquakes, tsunamis and storms.Aid officials said the storm was comparable in strength to Typhoon Haiyan, which hit the Philippines in 2013 and killed more than 6,000 people.UNICEF estimated that 54,000 children are among those affected by the cyclone.

cyclon :  onboard Ac 130 aid plane

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the impact and scope of the disaster remains unclear.

"We hope the loss of life will be minimal," he said at the World Conference on Disaster Risk and Reduction in Japan.

Husband missing since cyclone hit

Both Australia and New Zealand have sent in aid flights carrying emergency supplies while a UN team was also preparing to travel to the disaster zone.
The UK has pledged to contribute up to £2m in aid to help in the wake of the storm.