Holidaymakers are left stranded in Fiji as tropical cyclone Sarai brings 90kmh winds and fears of flash floods
- Tropical Cyclone Sarai began to develop off of the coast of Fiji on Friday
- Flights to Fiji from places such as Sydney, Los Angeles and Auckland cancelled
- One traveller said she wouldn’t be able to fly back to New Zealand until Sunday
Tropical Cyclone Sarai has left holidaymakers travelling to and from Fiji stranded as it brings 90kmh winds and fears of flash floods.
The cyclone began brewing off the coast of Fiji on Friday and has threatened the plans of thousands of tourists.
Airlines such as Fiji Airways have cancelled flights to the island from places such as Sydney, Brisbane, Los Angeles and Auckland.
Tropical Cyclone Sarai began brewing off the coast of Fiji on Friday and has threatened the plans of thousands of tourists
Hannah Moloney, from Auckland, is currently on Fiji’s Coral Coast with some friends.
The group were supposed to fly home on Friday but will now be in Fiji until at least Sunday.
‘We just got up and got ready and packed and went to head off to the airport and then we got the alert from Air New Zealand that the flights were cancelled,’ Ms Moloney told the New Zealand Herald.
‘It hasn’t stopped raining since about 8pm last night and it’s just literally rained non-stop and all the flights are now cancelled.’
She said it is predicted Saturday’s flights will also be cancelled as the worst of the storm will hit.
Ms Moloney said electricity was out to some areas due to the storm.
Airlines such as Fiji Airways have cancelled flights to the island from places such as Sydney, Brisbane, Los Angeles and Auckland due to the intense winds that have knocked over trees
Fiji Airways has cancelled 54 flights for Friday and brought five flights forward that are all departing Fiji.
Two flights have been cancelled for Saturday at this stage.
Air New Zealand’s website said they are ‘closely monitoring the Tropical Cyclone approaching Fiji’.
The Fiji Meteorological Service warned of ‘damaging gale force winds’ and heavy rain with coastal flooding expected in many areas as the cyclone intensified
‘Based on current forecasting, we are anticipating disruption to our flights to and from Nadi, Fiji,’ the website read.
The Fiji Meteorological Service warned of ‘damaging gale force winds’ and heavy rain with coastal flooding expected in many areas as the cyclone intensified.
It was expected to be a Category Two storm by the time it hit the main island of Viti Levu early Saturday with average winds of 65 kilometres per hour and gusts of 90 kilometres per hour.
It was expected to be a Category Two storm by the time it hit the main island of Viti Levu early Saturday with average winds of 65 kilometres per hour and gusts of 90 kilometres per hour
The Fiji Disaster Management Office has activated its emergency shelters and issued a public advisory for people to have their ‘disaster kits’ ready.
Many day cruises around the islands have been called off while Fiji Airways has cancelled several inter-island flights and flights to Australia and New Zealand.
Flights to the United States have been brought forward several hours to avoid the advancing cyclone.
In February 2016, 44 people were killed when Cyclone Winston destroyed tens of thousands of homes and causing an estimated US$1 billion in damage when it hit Fiji.