Oxfam Community Aid Abroad is providing relief to communities in the islets of Tikopia and Anuta in the Solomon Islands which have been hit by two cyclones in the past year.

Internally displaced people assist with loading relief food onto the ship. Photo: Chris Stuart/OxfamAUS.

Elima Kastom knew something wasn't quite right. There was an unusual calmness in the wind and there were no waves at sea. The birds seemed excitable and restless, and many had started to migrate, which was uncommon for that time of year. There were also extreme tidal levels at sea. Something definitely was not right.

Two weeks later, Cyclone Zoe hit the eastern end of the Solomon Islands. The two islets hit hardest were Anuta and Tikopia, the latter being where Elima and his family lived. It was December 2002.

Just a day before the cyclone hit, Elima's cousin heard warnings about a 'storm' on the local radio. People started tuning into other radio stations – ABC Australia and BBC World. Soon they learned that a cyclone was approaching. The community tried to prepare for what was to come. They strengthened their houses by tying additional knots around the stumps and put banana tree trunks on their roofs. Then they tried to ensure their possessions would be safe. It was the season for cyclones, which are a part of the natural rhythm of life on this isolated island.

Within a day, the storm had developed into a devastating cyclone. Many people sought refuge in caves, while others hid behind rocks or anything that was solid. But this was unlike any previous cyclone. It raged and raged and became more and more ferocious, with huge waves battering the island.

After it was over, the locals expected to find dead bodies – but there were none. "It is no secret that we survived this cyclone, but the fact is, had the cyclone continued for another six hours, people would have died from exposure," says Elima.

Cyclone Zoe caused almost total devastation on Tikopia as well as the nearby island Anuta, which together share a population of some 3,700 people. Homes, gardens and the general environment were destroyed. Vegetation, both wild and cultivated, was washed away, buried or killed by salt-water contamination. Storm surges and high seas flooded over the sandpit (where nearly half of the population lived), separating sea and lake, contaminating the freshwater lake in which the Tikopians relied on for water and fish. Oxfam responded by supplying seeds and tarpaulins and assisting in the coordination of urgent relief supplies with the Solomon Islands National Disaster Management Office and other nongovernment organisations.

A house destroyed by Cyclone Zoe. Photo: OxfamAUS.

Just as the people of Tikopia and Anuta were starting to rebuild their lives, Cyclone Gina hit in June 2003 - just six months after Cyclone Zoe. Nearly 150 recently rebuilt homes were destroyed, as was the vegetation and new crops that were beginning to grow and due to be harvested in late 2003.

The governments of Australia, New Zealand and France provided some relief, but in recent months, it has became apparent to Oxfam Community Aid Abroad that the people of these tiny isolated islets were still in desperate need of food relief. By November, Tikopia, due to the loss of vegetation cover, could not attract rain bearing winds and was in a situation of drought, with no rainfall since July. Without urgent assistance, there was fear that people would starve.

In November 2003, Oxfam Community Aid Abroad provided food relief to Tikopia and Anuta, delivering 900 litres of vegetable oil and 1,500 sacks of fresh potatoes and yams. Australia's Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands supplied a boat, the Wewak, to deliver our donation of food. This was a good example of civilmilitary cooperation to help people in desperate need.

Oxfam Community Aid Abroad's Emergency Coordinator Chris Stuart comments: "The people of Tikopia and Anuta had not yet recovered from Cyclone Zoe. They were still waiting for their new crops to grow when Cyclone Gina hit. The homes that were rebuilt were damaged, and their crops uprooted."

Chris and Zalynn Peishi, our Emergencies Program Officer, visited the Solomon Islands in November. They helped to monitor the distribution of aid to Tikopia and Anuta, as well as providing training to our field office in Honiara around how to better respond to disasters in the Pacific region.

"Oxfam Community Aid Abroad is now the lead Oxfam for emergency response and disaster management in the Pacific region so it is crucial that all our staff – both in the Emergencies Unit in Australia as well as our field offices – are well equipped and trained to respond to humanitarian situations," says Chris.

Story by Editor Lisa Vettori and Emergencies Coordinator Chris Stuart.

More information about our work in responding to emergencies around the world will be provided in upcoming issues of Oxfam News. To find out more about our work in emergency response, visit www.oxfam.org.au/world/emergencies.