The death toll following a 7.3 magnitude earthquake which hit Vanuatu on Tuesday is expected to rise. Video / NZ Herald
An Auckland couple and their children — aged 5 months and 2 years — are rationing food and water after being caught by the deadly earthquake in Vanuatu while on holiday.
Almost 24 hours after the 7.3 magnitude quake struck, they have had to barter for water and food and are urging New Zealand officials to organise mercy flights to get Kiwis home.
“They need to get in contact with us and put a plan together. They keep saying to contact local authorities, but they don’t help. They just tell us to go home.
“We just need to hear from our Government and their plan to evacuate us,” the woman, who asked not to be named, said.
“There is no communication whatsoever as to what we need to do. Staying in place is fine, but the food and water are going to run out quickly.”
An Auckland couple and their two young children are rationing their food and water supply after being caught up in the earthquake aftermath in Vanuatu.
The quake struck at a depth of 57km and 30km west of Vanuatu’s capital city, Port Vila, at 2.47pm. So far, the official death toll stands at 14. Hundreds of people have been injured.
There is no power, running water or fuel. They managed to barter six litres of bottled water from the township when they went to find help.
The woman’s 5-month-old son was being weaned off breastmilk. However, that has changed as the family tries to conserve water.
The couple and their children have been in Vanuatu for the past two weeks; ahead of what was to be a a surprise birthday celebration for a relative in the coming days. That party has since been cancelled.
They had been on the island of Santo before flying to Port Vila two days ago.
The woman’s Auckland-based mother, Debbie Williams, said her daughter described the earthquake as “violent”. The family had been in an AirBnB apartment when the quake struck yesterday afternoon.
Damage to buildings and the first attempts at recovery in Port Vila after the a 7.3 magnitude quake struck yesterday. Photo / Michael Thompson
“It was really violent and they were thrown across the room. They were just trying to hold onto the kids. Both of them hurt their arms.
“They grabbed as much as they could, including their passports, and got out. The building had cracks in the walls... and they [thought]: ‘No way are we staying here’.”
They have since been taken in by an English family living on the island. With them are other families — expat Australians, who she said have been told they will need to wait for commercial flights to start again if they wanted to evacuate.
There are 58 New Zealanders registered as being in Vanuatu. However, officials believe more are there.
Williams said she simply wanted to know what the New Zealand Government was planning to do to get its citizens off Vanuatu.
“It’s the hygiene thing that I’m worried about. There are no flushing toilets and it’s 30-plus degrees. It’s really, really hot.
“When it comes to little children, you don’t mess around.”
