A powerful earthquake struck Vanuatu, causing widespread damage and leaving hundreds injured. Rescue efforts are underway, but the full extent of the damage is unknown.
Vanuatu ’s capital was without water on Wednesday, a day after reservoirs were destroyed by a violent magnitude 7.3 earthquake that wrought havoc on the South Pacific island nation. The number of people killed and injured is expected to rise. The main hospital reported nine deaths, but a spokesperson said the number was “expected to increase” as people remained trapped in fallen buildings. About 200 people have been treated for injuries.
Two of those killed were Chinese nationals, according to China’s official Xinhua News Agency. Frantic rescue efforts that began at flattened buildings after the quake hit early Tuesday afternoon continued 30 hours later, with dozens working in dust and heat with little water to seek those yelling for help inside. A few more survivors were extracted from the rubble of downtown buildings in Port Vila, also the country’s largest city, while others remained trapped and some were found dead. A near-total telecommunications collapse meant people struggled to confirm their relatives’ safety. Some providers began to re-establish phone service but connections were patchy. Internet service had not been restored because the submarine cable supplying it was damaged, the operator said. The earthquake hit at a depth of 57 kilometres (35 miles) and was centred 30 kilometres (19 miles) west of the capital of Vanuatu, a group of 80 islands home to about 330,000 people. A tsunami warning was called off less than two hours after the quake, but dozens of large aftershocks continued to rattle the country. The Asia-Pacific head of the International Federation of Red Cross, Katie Greenwood, speaking to the Associated Press from Fiji, said it was not clear how many people were still missing or killed
EARTHQUAKE VANUATU RESCUE TSUNAMI DAMAGE
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