Cyclone Winston in Fiji

Cyclone Winston hit Fiji on 19 February, leaving at least 28 dead and destroying hundreds of homes.

The Category Five storm (the most powerful on the Saffir-Simpson Scale) is the worst to affect Fiji in decades. It was also one of the most powerful storms the southern hemisphere in recorded history.

Winston made landfall at 06:30 UTC (18:30 local time) on the north of Viti Levu, the main island in the archipelago. From there it moved west, and the large storm narrowly avoided the capital city of Suva.

The government declared a state of emergency and imposed a 36-hour curfew for residents' safety.

The storm has reportedly destroyed entire villages and many homes were damaged or destroyed. Thousands of people are currently in hundreds of evacuation centres until they can return to their homes, if possible.

Winston also damaged power lines, leaving 80% of the population without power and impacting communications across the more than 300 islands in the archipelago. This limited or lack of communication is making it difficult to assess the full scale of the damage in the more remote islands. It is believed that some of the islands may have suffered far more damage than the main island. There are reports that Koro Island, one of the larger islands, may have suffered "catastrophic" damage.

Repair and recovery efforts began on 22 February, and rescue workers priorities are restoring communications and provided clean food and water to the many affected by the cyclone.