Climate Change Resilience
By Ms. Makereta Komai, PACNEWS -
21 July, 2015, Nuku'alofa, Tonga, PMC-3 - The increasing number of deaths at sea, has the Tongan Meteorological Services (TMS) worried. They formally raised this issue at the Third Pacific Meteorological Council this week.
Director of the Tongan Met Service, Mr. Ofa Fa'anunu said in the last decade, the number of deaths at sea had reached 83, the highest fatality of 74 came from the sinking of one of the island's inter island ferry, Princess Ashika in 2008.
"In the last 30 months, we have lost nine lives at sea and in the first half of this year, we have already recorded two deaths", revealed Fa'anunu.
"From data available, it appears that more deaths are recorded at sea than from natural disasters, said Fa'anunu.
The head of the Tongan Met Service said his department will carry out a proper data analysis to ascertain the cause of deaths at sea and determine whether they are weather related.
"If they are, then we need to improve our maritime weather observation at sea, to ensure that we are providing accurate maritime weather information", said Fa'anunu.
Similar concerns were raised at the Third PMC meeting by American Samoa and Solomon Islands.
Forecasting weather observation at sea is a major challenge for many small island countries in the Pacific.
"For our maritime weather observation, we rely a lot on international container vessels that are equipped with state of the art communication tools that can provide information on maritime weather observation," said Mr. Ed Young, representing the United States National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
"It's an issue that is best addressed by the meteorological and fisheries divisions of island countries."
"Some of the fishing boats in the Pacific are already equipped with state of the art equipment for reporting their catches. They can also be used to provide maritime observation reports to the Met Services. The two government agencies need to co-ordinate and work together to address this current challenge facing many Pacific Island nations," he said.
The Third Pacific Meteorological Council meeting is underway in Nuku'alofa, Tonga this week. - #PacMC2015
Ms. Makereta Komai is the Manager and Editor of PACNEWS - www.pina.com.fj This article was developed by a Pacific Media Team of Reporters currently providing coverage on the Third Pacific Meteorological Council in Tonga. This activity coordinated by SPREP is supported by a partnership including the Government of Tonga, SPREP, Finland Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI), World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the Pacific Media Assistance Scheme (PACMAS).
21 July, 2015, Nuku'alofa, Tonga, PMC-3 - The increasing number of deaths at sea, has the Tongan Meteorological Services (TMS) worried. They formally raised this issue at the Third Pacific Meteorological Council this week.
Director of the Tongan Met Service, Mr. Ofa Fa'anunu said in the last decade, the number of deaths at sea had reached 83, the highest fatality of 74 came from the sinking of one of the island's inter island ferry, Princess Ashika in 2008.
Mr Ofa Fa'anunu addresses the Press Conference at the PMC-3
"In the last 30 months, we have lost nine lives at sea and in the first half of this year, we have already recorded two deaths", revealed Fa'anunu.
"From data available, it appears that more deaths are recorded at sea than from natural disasters, said Fa'anunu.
The head of the Tongan Met Service said his department will carry out a proper data analysis to ascertain the cause of deaths at sea and determine whether they are weather related.
"If they are, then we need to improve our maritime weather observation at sea, to ensure that we are providing accurate maritime weather information", said Fa'anunu.
Similar concerns were raised at the Third PMC meeting by American Samoa and Solomon Islands.
Forecasting weather observation at sea is a major challenge for many small island countries in the Pacific.
"For our maritime weather observation, we rely a lot on international container vessels that are equipped with state of the art communication tools that can provide information on maritime weather observation," said Mr. Ed Young, representing the United States National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
"It's an issue that is best addressed by the meteorological and fisheries divisions of island countries."
"Some of the fishing boats in the Pacific are already equipped with state of the art equipment for reporting their catches. They can also be used to provide maritime observation reports to the Met Services. The two government agencies need to co-ordinate and work together to address this current challenge facing many Pacific Island nations," he said.
The Third Pacific Meteorological Council meeting is underway in Nuku'alofa, Tonga this week. - #PacMC2015
Ms. Makereta Komai is the Manager and Editor of PACNEWS - www.pina.com.fj This article was developed by a Pacific Media Team of Reporters currently providing coverage on the Third Pacific Meteorological Council in Tonga. This activity coordinated by SPREP is supported by a partnership including the Government of Tonga, SPREP, Finland Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI), World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the Pacific Media Assistance Scheme (PACMAS).