Severe Tropical Cyclone Ian is closing in on Vava‘u tonight with huge gusts and heavy rain sweeping the group, and much worse to come, with “phenomenal seas” and very destructive 90-125 knots gusts predicted before dawn. At midnight, Vava‘u residents said the gusts were getting much stronger.

In its 12:30am advisory for Saturday January 11, Fua‘amotu TCWC stated that on its current track Severe Tropical Cyclone Ian (Category 4) is expected to lie about 50km west southwest of Vava‘u near Late at around 7:00am today.

Ian has estimated winds of 90 knots near its centre gusting up to 125 knots, along with heavy rain, and thunderstorms

“Flash flooding with phenomenal seas with damaging heavy northwest swells and sea flooding of northern coasts is likely”, Tonga's Fua'amotu Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre warned the Vava‘u Group in its advisory tonight. [2]

At midnight, Vava‘u residents said it was raining hard and the winds were getting much stronger.

Tonga Tuita at Neiafu Tahi said, “the wind's not yet strong enough to shake the breadfruit down, but it's building up”.

Tupoutu‘a Tonutonu, on the beach at ‘Utulei, said the wind started blowing strongly at 9:00pm (Friday) and by midnight it was coming in huge gusts. “Man, it is strong, it is just coming in now, but the [electric] power is still on.”

She said it was hard to determine which direction the wind was coming from. “It seems to come from the northeast and then the southwest. It’s up high and it's like it can't decide which way to go, so it's hard to know where it is going.”

She said the tide was still low but they were  watching the sea anxiously. The next high tide will be at around 3:29am when the Category 4 cyclone will be very close to Vava‘u.

Fua‘amotu TCWC stated that Severe Tropical Cyclone Ian Category 4 was located about 125km northwest of Hunga (VV) and 125km northwest of Longomapu (VV)  or about 210km north-northwest of Lifuka at 10:00pm and moving southeast at 5 knots.

The Ha‘apai Group will also feel the full brunt of storm as the centre is expected to pass between the two Tongan groups today.