Heroism and heartbreak at Vanuatu’s ground zero

A building popular with holiday-makers and locals in Vanuatu’s capital Port Vila is at the centre of a major rescue and recovery operation.

Rescue workers search beneath rubble in Port Vila. Picture: Vanuatu Police Force

A building popular with holiday-makers and locals in Vanuatu’s capital Port Vila is at the centre of a major rescue and recovery operation, with tales of heartbreak and heroism emerging after it ­collapsed during a devastating earthquake.

Four of Vanuatu’s 14 deaths confirmed so far from Tuesday’s 7.3 magnitude earthquake were officially attributed to the destruction of the Billabong building, but other people were miraculously pulled from the rubble alive.

The building, so named because it has a Billabong store, sat alongside and below other retail outlets and office spaces.

“Most of the tourists who would come by cruise ship would go to that shop,” World Vision Vanuatu country director Clement Chipokolo said. “Thankfully, yesterday (Tuesday) we did not have a cruise ship, otherwise things would have been different. I know one person personally that died there. They found his body close to the door, trying to get out.

“But even with that very sad story, one of our senior staff had a sister and a nephew also trapped in the same building. They had their phones, and they also had a space which they could call, and they were in touch the whole night, until this morning, when they were rescued.”

Vanuatu police said they pulled six survivors out of the building on Tuesday, and two more on Wednesday. Michael Thompson, who runs a zipline adventure business in Vanuatu, was at the Billabong building and said there were “incredible displays of bravery, with people entering confined spaces to conduct rescues”.

A collapsed building in the capital. Picture: Michael Thompson

Separately, six people died in a landslide and four people died in hospital, according to a Vanuatu government situation report, which stated that most of the damage occurred in Port Vila.

A building housing the high commissions of New Zealand and the Britain and the US and French embassies partially collapsed but was not believed to have resulted in any deaths. In one of the most challenging disruptions, Port Vila was without water after reserves were destroyed. Power and telecommunications networks also remained down in parts of the city.

Port Vila’s Bauerfield international airport would be closed for 72 hours to all commercial flights, local news service VBTC reported on Wednesday. However, Qantas said the airport would be closed to passenger services until at least Sunday.

Airports Vanuatu chief executive Jason Rakau said the runway was operational, and terminal building repairs were under way to allow commercial flights to resume. Aid flights have been cleared to go ahead.

No Australians were among the known casualties in earthquakes, Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said. He said both Anthony Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong had been in contact with their counterparts in Vanuatu. “Australia stands ready to assist the Vanuatu government as required in this critical time,” Mr Marles said.

Vanuatu police on the streets of Port Vila. Picture: Vanuatu Police Force

“Australia’s connection with the government and people of Vanuatu is strong and we will continue to work with them.”

Australia has deployed a $2m immediate response package at Vanuatu’s request, including a 64-person disaster assistance ­response team and two canines for urban search-and-rescue operations. The team would work alongside local authorities to recover people trapped in buildings, conduct safety assessments and remove hazards, while an Australian medical team would help treat the injured.

The teams were deployed from Australia to Port Vila on a Royal Australian Air Force C-17 Globemaster III and C-130J Hercules on Wednesday.

Senator Wong said her “message to the people of Vanuatu is Australia is here to help … This immediate package of support will ensure those in urgent need receive life saving assistance.”

The UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimated 116,000 people could be affected by the quake.

Australian medical staff prepare to leave Darwin. Picture: Alex Treacy

Tuesday’s major earthquake was followed by 6.1-magnitude tremor on Wednesday.

Australian tourist Tessa Jones said in the morning: “I’d say we’ve had at least 20 aftershocks.”

An Australian lawyer with longstanding business interests in Vanuatu said a friend with a surveying business above the ­Billabong store was lucky to be out working in the field at the time, while a colleague escaped unharmed after going for a cigarette. Another colleague who was in the building was “dug out alive”.

Mr Chipokolo said that when the earthquake struck just before 1pm, central Port Vila was a hive of activity.

“This is a time that many people from the outer islands would come to town, even with kids. It’s school holidays now and they would come to town to shop for their Christmas festivities or to visit family,” he said.