Fiji

One of the owners of the Matavai Resort on Kadavu Luke Kerchevale says the storm seemed to come out of nowhere.

"Quite a large boat is capsized because we couldn't get it to shelter soon enough. We've had a number of huge mango trees come down on a lot of our buildings," said Luke Kerchevale.

The Australian who along with co-owner Mark hails from Canberra and Sydney said thankfully all of their staff and guests were safe but he said they were really worried for people in the nearby villages.

The Fiji Met Service said the cyclone remains a category three storm packing winds of 130 kilometres per hour, gusting up to 185.

However, Keni was forecast to weaken drastically as it continued to move southeast into cooler waters.

The Met Service said within the next 18 hours the system could cease to be a cyclone.

Cyclone Keni wreaked havoc as it passed the southern islands of Fiji overnight bringing destructive winds and downpours causing flooding.

Cyclone Keni is Category 3 storm and is expected to be closest to the islands from midday today.

The Fiji weather office is expecting Keni to pass south of Nadi before making landfall over the southern island of Kadavu.

People are being told to expect destructive winds of up to 170 kilometres an hour.

The government says they need to prepare a three day family disaster kit, strengthen their homes, be ready for power cuts and evacuate if need be.

It's the second cyclone to hit Fiji in just over a week after Cyclone Josie left six people dead over Easter.

It comes just over a year after the INF announced that Fiji had won the right to host the second staging of the event.

The agreement was signed by Netball Fiji President Wainikiti Bogidrau and INF counterpart Molly Rhone during the Commonwealth Games here.

Among those present at the signing ceremony were Fiji’s Minister for Youth and Sports Laisenia Tuitubou and Fiji Sports Commission executive chair Peter Mazey.

Alison Burchell, acting permanent secretary for the Ministry of Youth and Sports, was also present.

In a repeat of last month's final in Vancouver, Fiji ran in four tries to move within just three points of series leaders South Africa in the overall standings and take their third tournament win of the 2018 world series.  
 
Two yellow cards in the first half for Kenya's Collins Injera and Willy Ambaka allowed the Pacific islanders to take a 17-0 lead at half-time. Despite tries from Kenya's Billy Odhiambo and Oscar Ouma in the second half, Fiji were uncatchable and cemented their reputation in Hong Kong as the team to beat.  

At 6 am local time this morning it was about 760 km west northwest of Nadi and was starting to move east southeast about seven to 10 km an hour.

A lead forecaster at the office said the Category 1 storm was expected to become a Category 2 in the next 24 hours and there was a good chance the level could be raised to Category 3.

All schools in Fiji are closed for at least the next two days but are being made available as evacuation centres.

Last weekend Cyclone Josie killed six people and caused extensive damage.

Fiji police have confirmed that a man was swept away by strong currents and another man is still missing as flood waters begin to rise again a week after Cyclone Josie.

Heavy rain, widespread flooding, and damaging winds are expected over the next 24 to 48 hours.

The Director National Disaster Management Office Anare Leweniqila said the weather system has a high potential of developing into a category one cyclone.

Four people died and one person is still missing after the cyclone brought severe weather to Fiji as a Category 1 storm over the weekend.

The western half of the main island Viti Levu was worst hit by widespread flooding.

The Fiji Red Cross has been busy giving out aid like dignity kits, hygiene packs, jerry cans, and solar lights to those worst affected

People are still taking shelter in evacuation centres.

Nadi houses the most evacuees, with 471 people making use of eight evacuation centres in the town.

The Fiji Met Service says Tropical Cyclone Josie is moving 25 kph East-South East, away from the Fiji group.

It says the category one cyclone is expected to have average winds of up to 75kph with momentary gusts upto to 100 kph.

A gale warning remains in force the Yasawa and Mamanuca group, Viti Levu, Kadavu, Lau and Lomaiviti group, and nearby smaller islands.

A strong wind warning remains in force for the rest of the Fiji.

A heavy rain warning remains in force for the whole of the Fiji group.

Speaking in the Solomons parliament Monday, Manasseh Sogavare said Fiji should apologise for bringing Indonesia into the MSG.  

He said Fiji's Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama breached MSG procedure by forcing the other four full members to accept Indonesia as part of the sub-regional grouping, whose full members are Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and FLNKS Kanaks movement of New Caledonia.  

Indonesia was admitted to the MSG with observer status in 2011 after Bainimarama assumed the MSG's rotational chairmanship.