OCHA Situation Report No. 2
Vanuatu - Volcanic Eruption
8 December 2005


This situation report is based on information provided by the Government 
of Vanuatu and the UN Resident Coordinator's Office in Fiji.

Situation

1. Mt. Ambae volcano erupted on 27 November in Ambae Island of Vanuatu. 
Volcanic tremors continue to occur but the level of activity is 
moderate. At this moment there is no possibility of lahars. 
Volcanologists from New Zealand and French are expecting that this 
activity could last for the next week, eventually slowing down. If the 
activity would remain as it is now, an eruption could cause more dry ash 
and acid rain to fall over nearby villages.

2. According to the National Disaster Management Office (NDMO) of 
Vanuatu, there has been no casualty so far. Villagers are moving to ten 
relocation centers in low-risk area of the island. The number of 
evacuees is 2,130 and the authorities expect between 5,000 ?7,000 to be 
evacuated. Some of the communities have left Ambae for other islands.

National Response

3. The Government has not yet declared a state of emergency but a state 
of preparedness. The situation report released on 6 December by the NDMO 
stated that the Government had not issued any request for international 
assistance but identified potential needs such as water containers, 
water tanks, cooking utensils, food and shelter.

4. Although no major medical cases have been reported yet, the Ministry 
of Health has put on standby a team of doctors and nurses and has 
prepared medical supplies to be sent to Ambae. Research officers are on 
the island to identify wells to channel water to communities, as there 
is a shortage of water. Communities in the island are using up their 
local food crops. Families living in the capital, Port Vila, and other 
islands are sending food supplies.

International Assistance

5. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) is supporting the Vanuatu 
Red Cross Society (VRCS) and NGOs in providing water containers to the 
affected communities. Other international organizations are on standby. 
UNICEF has already dispatched 200 water containers through the VRCS for 
the relocation centers.

6. According to a report issued by the International Federation of Red 
Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), the VRCS has distributed 66 
family kits, two water tanks and has prepared to send further 240 family 
kits.

7.  OCHA is in close contact with the Government of Vanuatu, the UN 
Resident Coordinator's Office in Fiji and the Government of New Zealand 
and will revert with further information as it becomes available. This 
situation report, together with further information on ongoing 
emergencies, is also available on the OCHA Internet Website at 
http://www.reliefweb.int.

A map of Vanuatu is at 
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900LargeMaps/SKAR-64GDJJ?OpenDocument&cc=vut&rc=5


Tel.:  +41-22-917 12 34
Fax: +41-22-917 00 23
E-mail: ochagva@un.org

In case of emergency only: Tel. +41-22-917 20 10

Desk Officers:
  Mr. Masaaki Nakagawa, direct Tel. +41-22-917 4034

Press contact:
  GVA - Ms. Byrs Elizabeth, direct Tel. +41-22-917 2653
  NYC - Ms. Stephanie Bunker, direct Tel. + 1-917 367 5126

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