NZ aid flight to Tanna

Foreign Minister Murray McCully says a New Zealand C-130 Hercules aircraft has travelled to Tanna Island this afternoon with relief supplies and the Vanuatu Prime Minister on board.

“Tanna Island is about 230km to the south of Port Vila and early aerial surveillance shows a large number of buildings have been completely or partly destroyed by Cyclone Pam,” Mr McCully says.

“Getting relief supplies to the outer islands is an urgent task. On board this flight were NZDF personnel, a Red Cross team, and almost seven tonnes of relief supplies, including; tarpaulins, 100 toolkits, six chainsaw packs, and four generators.

“The aircraft is also transporting Vanuatu Prime Minister Mr Joe Natuman to allow him to assess the damage first hand. 

“The New Zealand government is currently considering further options to assist the people and government of Vanuatu to recover from this catastrophic cyclone,” Mr McCully says.
To date New Zealand has made a financial contribution of $2.5 million dollars and provided a number of Defence Force flights as part of its assistance following Cyclone Pam.