**Because of the information provided here on Taveuni relayed by Miriam in the US with her friends living in Taveuni, we have now been able to reorganise Ken's plans for Taveuni leg of trip to Rabi. This aftermath report is from the Taveuni Estate between town and Adrian's farm at the very eastern point of Taveuni. We know now that Ken will have no hope of getting to the farm via car on his way to Rabi and will have to try and get to them on his way back out. Miriam's email also confirmed that there is no ATM or bank working there at the moment. VITAL INFORMATION. All funding will have to be done and go through Nadi. Hopefully this will give them some time to clear the roads or hopefully get phones back up. We will contact Taveuni Red Cross office and try and get more information and hopefully try and co-ordinate something with Ken's crossing to Rabi planned now for Saturday. The DISMAC assessmemt should have a report back on Rabi to Taveuni office by today.
For those on the ground in Fiji - please keep your information coming in as this vital information relayed by Miriam has just saved us a lot of valuable time and money in getting Ken to Rabi - Thank you Miriam**
Here is some of the importatnt information we received regarding Taveuni:
Just got an e-mail from my friend Lenny................he wrote (I've removed personal info):
"Everyone is okay. The water is on-and-off.............No phone service unless we go up high. Then sporadic. Amazed I have a weak internet signal. Trees down all over the place. Roads cut off...........Gas station down for now. The road to town is impassable except for 4WD and even then, rough going. The creek at Wairiki is now a torrent that is fairly dangerous to navigate across, with much of the pavement gone and several deep holes beneath the water. 4WD and a lot of caution and it's just possible to get across. The water should abate sometime soon. The dalo crop is destroyed as are most of the other food crops. Bananas gone, papayas, gone. Many people worried about food. No telling when the government will mobilize. Bank will reopen who knows when. I guess when they get the phones working since that's how the ATM connects with the outside world..........Barry's yacht lost the stern anchor and is on the beach at Viani Bay. Barry had to be evacuated back to Taveuni, but he seems to be okay with only minor injuries.........."
This part was very good:
"In the village, only one roof got blown off. That seems amazing. No one got hurt. Just wet."
"the marina is wrecked. The golf course is largely wrecked from the storm surge throwing boulders and from trees down and people detouring onto the fairway to dodge the closed road. Little by little the cleanup begins. The first chainsaw of the morning just sparked up."
Best Wishes,
Miriam
LA United States
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