Tropical Cyclone Tomas battered Fiji for a second day as more than 10,000 people took shelter in evacuation centers on Tuesday throughout the Pacific island nation.

 

Torrential rains and winds averaging 175 km an hour generated waves up to seven metres high on the second biggest island Vanua Levu, flooding villages, toppling trees and bringing down power and communication lines, according to reports from the capital, Suva. The director of Fiji's disaster management centre, Pajiliai Dobui, said communication had been lost on Vanua Levu and outlying islands including Taveuni and Lau, and the extent of the damage would not be known until Wednesday.

 

 

The category four cyclones, with winds gusting up to 230 km an hour, was reported to be the worst in more than 30 years to hit Fiji. Early Tuesday, after an overnight curfew over much of the country was lifted, the eye of the cyclone was about 240 km from Suva.