Vanuatu

16 Stories

Quake Wrecks Recently Opened US Embassy

At least 14 dead in 7.3-magnitude Vanuatu quake

(Newser) - A magnitude 7.3 earthquake that struck off Vanuatu killed at least 14 people, injured hundreds more, and caused widespread damage across the South Pacific island nation, officials said early Wednesday. Frantic rescue efforts got underway after the quake hit Tuesday afternoon, and rescuers worked through the night, trying to...

Airline Abruptly Files for Bankruptcy, Strands Passengers

Air Vanuatu, country's tourism office are working to rebook passengers

(Newser) - Air Vanuatu filed for bankruptcy protection on Friday a day after the South Pacific state-owned carrier cancelled all international flights, stranding thousands of travelers, the AP reports. The airline on Wednesday cancelled more than 20 flights to and from the Australian cities of Sydney and Brisbane, and the New Zealand...

This Is the Latest Move in US' 'Anti-China Pacific Push'

An embassy in Vanuatu is announced

(Newser) - Vanuatu, the South Pacific island nation, will soon have a United States embassy. In its continuing bid to counter the increasing influence China has in the Pacific, the US announced the move Friday, Reuters reports. "Consistent with the US Indo-Pacific strategy, a permanent diplomatic presence in Vanuatu would allow...

Watch These Slackliners Set a Heart-Stopping Record

Daredevils Rafael Bridi, Alexander Schulz made longest walk over active volcano in early pandemic

(Newser) - If walking over an active volcano via slackline is on your bucket list, you might look to Brazilian daredevil Rafael Bridi for guidance. Per UPI, Bridi and fellow slacklining enthusiast Alexander Schulz of Germany set a Guinness World Record for "longest slackline walk over an active volcano," which...

Island Halts Travel After Dead Sailor Tests Positive

Vanuatu recorded only 3 previous COVID cases

(Newser) - Being an island nation has helped Vanuatu avoid the worst of the pandemic—but its strict border controls didn't stop the arrival of its latest case. Officials in the Pacific nation say the body of a Filipino sailor that washed up on a beach April 11 has tested positive...

In One Part of the World, Prince Philip Was Nearly a God

2 Vanuatu tribes are mourning the Duke of Edinburgh

(Newser) - Plenty of people in Britain are mourning the death of Prince Philip, but their sorrow may be trumped by that of some people across the globe. On the Vanuatuan island of Tanna, the tribespeople in two villages have considered the Duke of Edinburgh a "god-like spiritual figure" for decades,...

Volcanic Island Will Be Permanently Evacuated

10K residents of Ambae will be displaced

(Newser) - The Pacific nation of Vanuatu is preparing to permanently evacuate the entire population of one of its islands as thick ash spewing from a volcano kills crops, dirties water supplies, and fouls the air. The 10,000 or so people who remain on Ambae island have mixed feelings about the...

Entire Island Evacuated as Volcano Rumbles

Vanuatu orders all 11K people off Ambae

(Newser) - Vanuatu officials on Thursday ordered the complete evacuation of an island in the Pacific archipelago where a rumbling, belching volcano is threatening to blow. Government spokesman Hilaire Bule says ministers decided they couldn't risk people's lives and so ordered the compulsory evacuation of Ambae island, which is home...

Woman Dies After Drinking 'Cure' That's Basically Clorox

It's promoted by a fringe church whose founder says he's from another galaxy

(Newser) - An institution calling itself the Genesis II Church of Health and Healing is anything but, according to a man who says an elixir promoted by the church as a "miracle cure" is the same concoction that killed her, ABC News reports. Doug Nash says he and his wife, Sylvia...

Relief Teams Reach Devastated Vanuatu

Widespread destruction found on outer islands

(Newser) - Relief workers who have struggled for days to access remote areas of Vanuatu that were ravaged by a fierce cyclone finally reached some of the islands today, where they were confronted with scenes of widespread destruction. Australian military planes that conducted aerial assessments of the outer islands found significant damage,...

Vanuatu: Cyclone Has Wrecked Whole Country

President says he doesn't even know if his family is safe

(Newser) - Vanuatu's president says the cyclone that hammered the tiny South Pacific archipelago over the weekend was a "monster" that destroyed or damaged 90% of the buildings in the capital and has forced the nation to start anew. Baldwin Lonsdale, who was attending a UN disaster conference in Japan...

8 Dead After Cyclone Hits South Pacific Islands

Power is out and 44 more deaths remain unconfirmed

(Newser) - At least eight people were confirmed dead in Vanuatu after a massive cyclone tore through the tiny South Pacific archipelago, and the death toll is likely to rise much higher once communications are restored with outlying islands, aid workers say. Packing winds of 168 miles per hour, Cyclone Pam tore...

Major Quake Rattles Vanuatu
 Major Quake Rattles Vanuatu 
Aug 10, 2010 4:57 AM CDT

Major Quake Rattles Vanuatu

No deaths reported after 7.5 quake, tsunami hit island nation

(Newser) - Thousands of people in the Pacific island nation of Vanuatu headed for the hills today as a magnitude 7.5 earthquake hit and triggered a small tsunami. No injuries or serious damage were reported despite the strength of the quake, which witness said shook buildings for at least 10 seconds,...

Island Cult Worships... Prince Philip?

On Tanna, they believe Queen's hubby will return in glory

(Newser) - To most of the world, Prince Philip is the Queen of England’s gaffe-prone husband, but on the tiny island of Tanna in Vanuatu, he’s the messiah. Philip’s never actually been to the island, but he and the Queen did visit Vanuatu in 1974, and that’s probably...

South Pacific Avoids Tsunami After Big Earthquakes

Warning issued after off Vanuatu, canceled after only small wave materializes

(Newser) - Tsunami warnings for a swath of the South Pacific—including American Samoa, Australia and New Zealand—issued after a pair of strong underwater earthquakes have been canceled after only a small wave materialized. Many residents had already moved to higher ground after the 7.8 and 7.1 temblors; American...

Island Nation Favors 4-Legged Currency

Vanuatu government encourages trade in shells, tusks, pigs

(Newser) - Vanuatu, a former Anglo-French colony once called the world's happiest country, is de-emphasizing cash in favor of traditional forms of exchange: shells, necklaces, grass mats, and pigs. The Telegraph travels to the South Pacific, where Vanuatu's government decreed a "Year of the Traditional Economy," encouraging citizens to reject...

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