Shamal's Blog

The risk of a drought taking place in Fiji is no longer high during this time period but it is still there nonetheless. The driest areas, dry zones, are the "lower islands and leeward areas of the Fiji Islands". They are the ones that are most vulnerable to droughts. Droughts can have a very big impact on agriculture which is a very big part of Fiji's economy. The impacts of the 1997-1998 was a big event in Fiji. In October 1998, the "southeastern coastal belt of Viti Levu began experiencing low stream flows and surface water shortage (hydrologic drought)". This drought caused a "$104 million loss in revenue in the sugarcane industry alone". The regions that got hit the most were the western sides of Viti Levu, Vanua Levu, and the Yasawas, in these regions "90% of the population received food and water rations". Natural Disasters in Fiji (go-fiji.com)

Oceans coasts have always been susceptible to coastal erosion and Fiji has a lot of these coasts. There are 2 main reasons as to why coastal erosion may occur, the first is through natural causes and events, the second is through human interference with coastal processes. In general, the beaches and shorelines of Fiji showcase a strong coastal stability. but there are many specific areas which suffer erosion. In Fiji most if not all of coastal erosion is not due to any natural factor but because of human influence. One such case is the erosion at Long Sandy Beach on the island of Matacawa Levu in the resort known as Long Sandy Beach. Jetties were built in order to extend the area of the resort. "This blocked the existing coastal longshore-drift and current direction". This in return led to the reversed circulation hitting the shore and causing the erosion. The jetties had altered and changed the coastal currents which led to erosion over a specific area of the beach. Another ...

The Pacific region as a whole is suffering more and more from extreme weather due to climate change aside global warming. They are most definitely the ones who are most vulnerable to it but also contribute the least in terms of global emissions. The average temperatures have already increased about 34 degrees Fahrenheit and are still on the rise. This also causes "ocean acidification" which is continuously increasing further with global warming. This affects reef ecosystems which is an essential part of the communities livelihood. due to this coastal erosion is also being sped up as they act as the "first line of defense against storm surges and strong waves". Global warming is also bringing about a rise in sea level. For example in Tuvalu, the sea level has already increased by around 13.2 cm from 1993 to 2021 with an upwards trend of 4.7mm per year. These alongside storm surges and king tides accelerate coastal inundation which is further affecting their water sec...

Cyclones and Hurricanes are very frequently occurring events in the Fiji Islands. I have lived through many of them even in my 8 years there. As devastating as they already are, it is made much worse due to the infrastructure levels of many peoples houses outside of the main cities. The worst cyclone in history to have ever hit Fiji was "Cyclone Winston", a category 5 storm with winds of 185 mph, which took place during the 2015-2016 cyclone season. It destroyed hundreds of homes and cut electricity lines. There are even reports of entire villages being flattened. The government opened around 750 evacuation centers to aid inhabitants in need help. Power, water, communications, roads, and many other essential utilities and infrastructure had been cut off in many parts of the country, it even rendered many regions as not contactable. "George Dregaso, of Fiji's National Disaster Management Office, told the Associated Press that about 80% of the nation's 900,000 peop...

Despite the many hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, and landslides that occur in Fiji. Sinkholes are actually rare to find, as far as areas that are inhabited. They can be caused by the rough waters of strong hurricanes that go through the land or even from the immense floods that could help build up the erosion. One event of a sinkhole took place on the main island of Viti Levu in the Kings Road, which is one of the main highways for the island. The road became closed in order to allow contractors to carry out the repair works more easily and urgently. It was determined that a majority of the wastewater pipe sections at Kings Road had collapsed and deemed unsafe. The repair work became especially complicated due to the repair teams having to safely move through and around buried utility services which were laying above the collapsed wastewater main. Bailing trucks had to be brought in so the wastewater could be diverted from the nearby pumping stations as well as the repair site. Fiji p...

One of the most frequent examples of Mass Wasting in Fiji would be landslides. There are many small and minuscule ones that take place throughout the year, due to earthquakes on just terrain structure on it's own. One of the biggest landslides to have hit Fiji was in December 18, 2016 on Fiji's Qamea island. The landslide swept many houses and structures into the seas. It happened due to the cyclone season dumping heavy rain and causing very severe floods throughout the country. The landslide took place in the Island's Dreketi village. Luckily there were no casualties but "more than half of the village was covered in soil and debris". Even the Village center, health center, and school was pushed out to sea. During the event many older people and children had to be moved into their neighboring villages, many even took boats to stay with relatives on Fiji's Taveuni Island.  Plate_Tectonic.pdf (mrd.gov.fj)