Tonga’s preparedness reduced impact of Gita, says UN agency [1]
Wednesday, February 21, 2018 - 18:03
UN agencies are applauding Tonga’s early warnings of Tropical Cyclone Gita to the community, saying it helped to reduce the impact on human lives after the islands of Tongatapu and ‘Eua were struck last week.
“The Government’s early warning actions and immediate response efforts are impressive,” said UN Resident Coordinator, Ms Osnat Lubrani.
“They clearly show the importance of preparedness.”
The Tonga Government reported on 17 February, there were 4,521 evacuees still living in 108 evacuation centres and over 1,550 houses have been damaged.
Since the cyclone, people have been very busy clearing and cleaning out their homes and businesses.
“I was impressed by the incredible sense of community and resilience of the people of Tonga. I have seen women and men working together and clearing roads and yards in an effort to resume their daily routine as soon as possible”, said Ms Lubrani.
But she pointed out that “disasters disproportionately affect children, women and girls, young people, persons living with disabilities and other vulnerable populations.”
“It is important that the Government-led response in Tonga reaches communities with life-saving services and equipment to rebuild their and their families' lives with dignity, while ensuring that the needs of vulnerable populations are prioritized in these efforts.”
There is a lot of damage to Tonga, its economy, people’s homes, the agriculture sector, and power and communications services are still out with many local and public offices remaining closed.
Help from humanitarian and development partners has been welcomed by the government to meet priority needs in the months to come.
The Pacific Humanitarian Team (PHT) is also providing support in the form of technical expertise as well as finance to the National Emergency Management Office at the request of the Government of Tonga. Along with other partners, they are responding to the immediate health, shelter, water, and sanitation needs of affected and vulnerable communities in Tonga.
In addition early recovery and education responses is now being deployed.
“It will take time and hard work by everyone to quickly recover from Tropical Cyclone Gita,” said Ms Lubrani. “The Pacific Humanitarian Team stands by the Government and the people of Tonga during these difficult times.”
PHT was established in 2008 and is a regional network of partners that assists Pacific Island governments in preparing for and responding to disasters.