El Nino

Last night a rescue operation was underway to recover the victim who was helping to douse the flames of a fire at Voh in the north of the territory.

Homes were evacuated and the main highway was cut on Sunday when fire engulfed bush in the area.

About 200 hectares of vegetation was burnt and about 20 homes threatened.

Three helicopters were brought in to help fight the fire which also involved security personnel who led convoys of motorists to safety.

Three helicopters were deployed to help control fires in Teremba, Voh and Pouembout.

Local media reports the fires are mostly due to human intervention, and have been aggravated by strong winds.

New Caledonia's president, Philippe Germain, yesterday issued a territory-wide fire ban, saying there is an extreme risk.

Like much of the Pacific, New Caledonia is predicted to experience well below normal rainfall in coming months as what's expected to be one of the worst El Niño systems in over a decade intensifies.

The El Nino has caused severe drought through much of the region including Vanuatu which is still recovering from Cyclone Pam.

UNICEF Pacific Representative Karen Allen says affected children are showing signs of malnutrition and diarrhoea which could lead to greater developmental issues in the future.

Dr Allen says although governments have said there is no need for any mass appeal, there is a pressing need to look at the potential costs of the system.

Acting Director of the National Disaster Management Office Akapusi Tuifagalele says following the 1997 drought, the country had experienced a series of natural disasters.

“That is one of the issues that we are actually looking into knowing that for what happened in 1997 & 1998 it was broken by a tropical cyclones, followed by flooding. We are hoping that is not going to happen for us during this season but it may,” said Akapusi Tuifagalele, acting Director NDMO.

According to a multi-agency study published this week in Nature Geoscience the predicted increase of severe El Nino and La Nina events will bring increased storm events with extreme coastal flooding and erosion across the Pacific.

Patrick Barnard from the US Geological Survey says other studies have analysed coastal impacts at local and regional levels but this is the first to look at patterns for the whole of the Pacific.

According to a multi-agency study published today in Nature Geoscience: "This study significantly advances the scientific knowledge of the impacts of El Niño and La Niña," said Patrick Barnard, USGS coastal geologist and the lead author of the study. "Understanding the effects of severe storms fueled by El Niño or La Niña helps coastal managers prepare communities for the expected erosion and flooding associated with this climate cycle."

The category five system tore through the states of Yap and Chuuk in March, killing five people, contaminating water supplies and wiping out crops.

Stuart Simpson says the IOM and the government has spent the past six months trying to restore crops on islands that bore a direct hit from Maysak, and these are only starting to produce food.

However, he says an El Niño that is predicted to be one of the worst in decades could bring a drought that will bring them back to step one, and they need to be prepared.

The UN resident coordinator in Fiji, Osnat Lubrani, says it is expected to rival the 1997 El Nino which is the most severe on record.

Ms Lubrani says drought problems currently being experienced around parts of the region are just the beginning.

She says governments need to start raising awareness in communities and preparing national emergency plans.

The UN's Resident Coordinator, Osnat Lubrani, says communities and governments need to prepare now for the extreme weather changes El Niño usually triggers.

He says some countries are already implementing or drafting drought plans and the UN is ready to help co-ordinate this and to provide technical advice.

Over the coming months, countries on the equator can expect more rain, flooding and higher sea levels, presenting challenges for low-lying atolls already feeling the impacts of climate change.

“Climatologists are now unanimous in predicting that we are heading for a strong to severe El Niño event in the coming months. Some modelling is now suggesting this El Niño could be as severe as the event in 1997/98 which is the worst on record and brought severe drought to PNG and Fiji,” United Nations Resident Coordinator, Osnat Lubrani said.