Number of dead and missing still unclear as first aid arrives in quake-hit Pacific nation of Vanuatu

[December 19, 2024]  By CHARLOTTE GRAHAM-McLAY

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Amid the havoc wrought by a violent earthquake two days earlier, Ivan Oswald and his staff at Nambawan Cafe on an idyllic stretch of Vanuatu’s waterfront prepared on Thursday for lunchtime service.

The menu for the usual lunchtime rush was replaced with defrosted sausages, readied for emergency workers who are sifting through rubble for those trapped alive or killed in flattened buildings when the massive, 7.3 jolt hit Port Vila, Vanuatu’s capital 48 hours earlier. Search crews were joined Thursday by specialists arriving in waves from Australia, New Zealand and France.

Earthquakes are normal for the South Pacific nation made up of 80 islands and home to 330,000 people, but Tuesday’s terrifying shake was like nothing they had felt before. Centered 30 kilometers (19 miles) offshore, at a depth of 57 kilometers (35 miles), the quake has been followed by hundreds of rattling aftershocks.

Death toll remains uncertain

The death toll was still unclear and official information remained scarce.

The government initially confirmed 14 deaths. On Wednesday, it said nine had been verified by the hospital -- but officials expected the number would rise. More than 200 injured people were treated, an official figure not updated in more than a day.

On Thursday, telecommunications -- though piecemeal and patchy -- were more widely restored after a near total blackout following the quake. It offered residents of Vanuatu answers about the scale of the damage and about how many people were missing.

As word got around that Nambawan had power and an independent internet source, rescuers, tourists and locals visited to charge devices and attempt to locate their relatives.

“We've had a few tears,” said Oswald, the cafe's owner. “I can't help with the rescue, but I can help with this.”

Damage concentrated in the capital

The extent of the havoc became clearer on Thursday. The worst-hit area was Port Vila's downtown, busy with lunchtime shoppers on Tuesday. Some outlying islands and villages near the quake's epicenter have experienced landslides.

Infrastructure damage was extensive — including to hospitals, roads, buildings, two major water reservoirs and gas pipes — the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said late on Wednesday. Response efforts were hampered by access problems.

A member of Australia's Federal Police stands by a collapsed building in Port Vila, Vanuatu, Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024, following a magnitude 7.3 earthquake that struck off the coast of Vanuatu in the South Pacific Ocean, Tuesday, Dec. 17. (Australian Federal Police via AP)

A massive landslide has blocked the sea port, limiting the transport of essential supplies and personnel, the UN agency said. The airport was open only for humanitarian use on Thursday, but the runway has been deemed operational and the resumption of commercial flights will be considered on Friday.

Fears over water and damage to buildings

Aid agencies told The Associated Press on Wednesday that their biggest worries were about drinking water and shelter for those unable to return home. The main utilities provider, UNELCO, said it could take two weeks to fully restore water service, according to the Vanuatu Broadcasting and Television Corporation.

While the search for survivors and recovery of bodies centered on two collapsed buildings in the city center, homes and businesses throughout Port Vila need structural checks by engineers before they can be used again.

Australian search experts on Thursday joined locals who had desperately dug for people yelling out from the crumpled buildings. After dramatic rescues of dust-covered survivors that lifted spirits on Tuesday and Wednesday, the mood had become bleaker about the prospects for those trapped, residents said.

It was not known how many people remained in the buildings — a garage and a surf clothing store. Among the dead were two Chinese nationals, according to China’s official Xinhua News Agency, which cited Gu Zihua, an official at the Chinese embassy in Vanuatu.

An economic blow

Another building housing embassies for several countries — including the United States, France and New Zealand — also crumpled, but no casualties were reported. Military flights evacuated 148 Australian nationals from Vanuatu late on Wednesday.

The quake at the start of the summer season in the tourism-dependent island nation threatened an economic crisis if tourists did not return, said Glen Craig, chair of the Vanuatu Business Resilience Council.

“We've had such bad luck,” said Craig, referring to the three cyclones that struck in 2023 and the collapse of Vanuatu's national airline in May. “We were just getting back on our feet and we were really looking forward to a bumper summer.”

All contents © copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved