Jim feels at home in Caledonia by Nina Ridge
A tropical cyclone in Caledonia! No, not Scotland but New Caledonia, which is a group of islands situated some 500 miles northeast of Australia in the Pacific Ocean.
The storm developed last week in the Coral Sea and has continued to travel south-eastwards whilst intensifying, currently with sustained winds of 93mph and gust in excess of 110mph. With these wind speeds the storm reached Category two status on a five point scale.
Jim potentially has winds which could be extremely destructive and deadly, although it seems to have spared many from the worst. The storm swept through the Loyalty Islands and New Caledonia through last night and early reports say that only minor damage has been inflicted on the islands. So far the only casualties seem to be many local boats and vessels which were harboured on the island of Honiara in the Solomon’s.
Disaster management services have been placed on full alert in Fiji's north and west tonight as flooding continues from heavy rain brought by a weather system generated by Cyclone Jim. Flooding has already been reported in Fiji in some low-lying areas around Labasa where rural roads and bridges are either under water or have been washed away. Some schools did not open on Tuesday while others closed early because students could not reach them.
Jim is now expected to head south-east away from the groups of islands and weaken.
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