EWS RELEASE — 14 MARCH 2015

Church Leaders Monitor Cyclone Pam's Impact, Prepare to Bring Help

AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND —

Ecclesiastical and Welfare Department leaders from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are assessing the unfolding impact of Cyclone Pam in Vanuatu, Fiji and other island nations today.

According to a Church leader in Suva, Elder Adolf Johansson, Latter-day Saint missionaries in the Fiji Suva Mission are accounted for and safe, except for two living in the remote nation of Tuvalu. Phone lines are down to Tuvalu so contact has not yet been made with these missionaries.

Missionaries serving in Port Vila, Vanuatu are safe. Contact has not been possible so far with missionaries in the outer islands of the Vanuatu Port Vila Mission.

Many Latter-day Saints and others in Vanuatu are sheltering in Church meetinghouses due to their homes being damaged or destroyed.

Pacific Area President of the Church, Elder Kevin W. Pearson, said, "We are deeply concerned for Latter-day Saints and all others caught in the path of this devastating cyclone. We are praying for their safety, and are working to understand where our resources will be needed in the coming days so we can assist as quickly and as effectively as we can."

ENDS

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