3 May 2010

More French aid expected in cyclone-stricken Wallis

5:27 am on 3 May 2010

A New Caledonia-based French warship, the Jacques Cartier, is due in Futuna today to deliver one month worth of food supplies.

The island lost about 80 percent of its crops when Cyclone Tomas struck in March.

The destruction caused immediate food shortages and has made the island dependent on supplies from the outside.

In March, it prompted the French government to requisition a New Caledonian airliner to rush supplies to Futuna.

The cyclone also washed away the road along the northern coast.