Was This Fiji’s Worst Hurricane?

To the people involved, any hurricane is likely to be classed as the worst : ever”, but so far as Fiji is concerned there is a good deal of evidence that if the hurricane of March 4, 1886, was not the worst ever, it came close to being thef worst in European times. Yet somehow it does not seem to have been recorded by the meteorological boffins. . „ , First brief reports of the blow were received in Sydney on March 19, but the first detailed accounts did not appear in New Zealand newspapers until March 24 when the steamer “Arawata” arrived from Suva—indicating the slowness of com munications between Fiji and the outside world in those days.

From those reports it is clear that the worst hurricane in Fiji within living memory up to that time was in 1871. But the 1886 blow was said to have been much iworse. About 40 lives appear to have been lost, mainly seamen in local smallcraft, :amongst which there were heavy losses.

The hurricane appears to have passed close to Wallis Island, where considerable damage was also done, before crossing Fiji. Its centre seems to have crossed Taveuni though its course through the group is otherwise obscure. The SS “Suva”, sheltering in Buca Bay on the Natewa Peninsula of eastern Vanua Levu recorded a barometer reading of 27.57 inches or about 934 millibars. This is a very low reading but there is no assurance that the instrument may not have been in error.

Great damage was caused at Levuka, Ovalau. Suva was less battered.

In a summary of hurricanes which have effected Fiji in European times pub lished in the “Fiji Times” of January 13, 1959, and compiled from information pro vided by the Suva Meteorological Office, there is surprisingly, no reference whatever to this hurricane. The worst blow ever recorded, according to that summary, was on March 24-25, 1910. The blow of March 20, 1871, mentioned above, is spoken of as the first recorded hurricane to affect the entire Group. The summary says that 111 hurricanes, 36 less severe cyclonic depressions, and one tornado were re corded in Fiji from 1840 (presumably up to 1958). From 1848 to 1856 was the longest recorded break between hurricanes. Next longest interval was from 1931 to 3936—50 the law of averages is no great aid in predicting the possibility of hurricane damage in Fiji.—J. P. Shortall.