DISASTER PREPAREDNESS AND DISASTER EXPERIENCE IN FRENCH POLYNESIA by Jean-Francois Dupon April 1985 Pacific Islands Development Program, East-West Center Honolulu, Hawaii JEAN-FRANCOIS DUPON is a staff member of the Office de la Recherche Scientifique et Technique Outre-Mer (ORSTOM), New Caledonia. The Pacific Island Development Program is publishing this report for use by Pacific Island governments. To ensure maximum dissemination of the material contained in the report, it is not copywrited and island governments are encouraged to copy the report or portions of it at will. PIDP requests, however, that organizations, institutions, and individuals acknowledge the source of any material used from the report. jPacific Islands Development Program - iii CONTENTS FOREWORD ............................................................ vii I. FRENCH POLYNESIA COUNTRY PROFILE .................................... 1 GEOGRAPHY ........................................................... 1 Area ........................................................... I Land Distribution .............................................. 1 Geographical Type .............................................. 1 Population ..................................................... 2 GOVERNMENT .......................... *.......*.........................2 Political Status ................................ *...............2 Government Structure ...........................................2 Local Government ............ 0...................... ... ... ... 5 Size of Police and Military Forces ............................. 5 Total Government Expenditure ................... ... ... ......... .5 ECONOMY ..................................................*...........6 Gross Domestic Product and Per Capita GDP ...................... 6 Subsistence Agriculture ................ 0..... .................. 9 Cash Crop Agriculture ........ Foreign Pbicatio................ ....... COMMUNTCATIONS ................... *....... ...... ......... ..... *...12 Newspapers .......................... .. ......................12 Commentaries ....................... ........ .. ..1 Religious Pb i a on .... .. .. .. .. ... ........ 12 Other Periodicals ............................ *.................13 iv - Pacific Islands Development Program Radio and Television............ .............................. 16 Weather Service. .................................... .......... 17 TRANSPORTATION. ........................................................................... 17 Roads (as of September 1980)..................................17 Ports ......... ................................................ Shi... pin ..... ...... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... .. ....25 RELATIONS WITH OTHER COUNTRIES .o. ................. .... ..........40 Consulates (Honorary Consuls) ...... ........................... 40 MEMBERSHIP IN REGIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS.............40 II. FRENCH POLYNESIA DISASTER EXPERIENCE PROFILE: DISASTER TYPES AND HISTORY ................................... .41 OVERVIEW....-...................... .4 Tropical Depressions and Cyclones.................................. 41 Storm T d s. .4 STORMS AND HURRICANES ............................. ............. .. 43 Recorded Storms and Hurricanes, 1800-1939................... 43 Recorded Storms, 1940-1969................................... .44 Recent Storms ........... .4 Pacific Islands Development Program - v OTHER TYPES OF DISASTERS .................... 48 Tsunami . .......................... ................. 48 DESCRIPTION OF TROPICAL CYCLONES...................................51 February 6, 1878............................ ...... 5 January 15, 10 ....................... 5 Ma rch 20-2 7 , 19 5 . 54 February 7-8, 1906 ................................... .......... 54 March 9-13, 1981 ................................... *.......... 56 March 20-23, 1 8 .. ......... .5 April 14 , 1 3 . .... .. .*. 58 III. FRENCH POLYNESIA PREPAREDNESS AND REHABILITATION PROFILE ........... 59 ORGANIZATION AND PLANNING OF RESCUE OPERATIONS IN THE EVENT OF A DISASTER ....................................... .5 Operations and Responsibilities...............................59 SPECIAL PROVISIONS RELATIVE TO DIFFERENT CIVIL DEFENSE SERVICES ....63 Traffic Police ............................. **...... ....... .o.. .63 Medical Care and Self-Help................................... 63 Public Works Department...... ................................. Emergency/Rescue Services .................... ........... .64 DISASTER RELIEF AND COMPENSATION SERVICES..........................65 WARNING SYSTEMS ...................... ..... ......................... .. 65 Regional and International ................................... 63 French Polynesia. ..................... .. ... 65 vi - Pacific Islands Development Program Tahitian Sys em........... ............. ... ..... ............. 67 Tsunami Forcasting ... ........... ........................ .67 EFFORTS TO MINIMIZE RISKS. .... ................ ...... ........... ...68 Urban Development Plan for Papeete, Chapter I, Article 15H....68 Territorial Planning Code, Title III, Chapter I, Article 161..69 Infrastructure. ............... ............... ............... .69 Insurance ..... ........... o o~...... ........ ..... .... ..70 Public Education and Information..............................70 PROVISION FOR THE NEED AND COST OF DISASTER PREPAREDNESS IN PLANNING AND BUDGETING ACTIVITIES................... .70 Damage Appraisal and Forms of ... 70 REFERENCES CYCLONES.OF.1982-1983.IN.FRENCH.P.L.N.. A................... 73 APPENDIX: THE CYCLONES OF 1982-1983 IN FRENCH POLYNESIA ........... ... 75 Pacific Islands Development Program - vii FOREWORD This report is a supplement to Disaster Preparedness and Disaster Experience in the South Pacific, published in 1982. In keeping with the original terms of reference for the Pacific Islands Development Program's Disaster Preparedness Project that was mandated by the Standing Committee of the Pacific Islands Conference, PIDP is publishing this report to provide regional governments with additional information about disaster preparedness in the countries and territories of the region. This report was prepared by Dr. Jean-Francios Dupon of Office de la Recherche Scientifique et Technique Outre-Mer (ORSTOM). Support for the preparation of this report was provided by the Government of France, and ORSTOM has generously agreed to allow Dr. Dupon to cooperate with PIDP on its Disaster Preparedness Project. PIDP gratefully acknowldeges the support of ORSTOM, the Government of France, and Dr. Dupon. Michael P. Hamnett Deputy Director Pacific Islands Development Program Pacific Islands Development Program I. FRENCH POLYNESIA COUNTRY PROFILE GEOGRAPHY Area Less than 4,000 km2 Land Distribution See Table 1 Table I Administrative Number o:, Area of Total Total Population Densit Subdivisions Inhabited Inhabited Surface Population (Persons/km/ of Islands Islands Area Inhabited Land) Windward Islands 5 1,172* 1,209 101,392 86.5 Leeward Islands 9 366 398 16,311 44.5 Marquesas Islands 10 823 997 5,419 6.6 Austral Islands 6 143 145 5,208 36.4 Tuamo tu-Gambier 84 856 910 9,052 10.6 114 3,360 3,659 137,382 41.0 *including Tahiti with 1,039 sq.kms. Geographical Type Over 120 French Polynesian Islands are scattered across more than four million square kilometers of water (over 2,000 kms. NS and EW). They are grouped into five archipelagos, with the Windward and Leeward Groups forming what are popularly known as che Society Islands. Between island groups, ocean depths reach more than 2,000 meters. While the islands all have a common volcanic origin, they are nevertheless divided into two major categories according to their age and to the differences in their present-day topography: 1. the "high" or volcanic islands, smaller in number but larger in terms of surface area (Society, Marquesas, and Austral Islands), formed by protrusions of underwater vo!lcanoes; 2 - Pacific Islands Development Program 2. the "low" or oceanic islands and atolls, consisting solely of coral formations deposited on submerged volcanic structures. Population The population of the Territory is extremely unevenly distributed. According to the last census taken in 1977, nearly three-quarters of the population of the Territory was concentrated in the Windward group within the Society Islands. Tahiti alone accounted for nearly 70 percent of the total population. While the commune (local governmental unit) of Papeete per se represented barely 17 percent of the total (the "metropolitan area" of Papeete in the broadest sense of the term, including the communes of Pirae and Arue to the east and Faaa to the southwest), represented over 42 percent of the total population of the Territory. If the other suburban communes comprising the "greater Papeete metropolitan area" (Marina and Punaauia) are included, the share leaps immediately to over 52 percent. Society Islands as a whole: 85.6 percent of the population Marquesas Islands: 4 percent :stral Islands: 4 percent Tuamotu-Gambier Islands: 6.4 percent of the population GOVERNMENT Political Status As defined by Law 77-772 of July 12, 1977, French Polynesia is a French overseas Territory with its own legal status and some administrative and financial autonomy, as provided by Article 72 of the French Constitution. Government Structure The Territory is represented in the French Parliament and the Economic and Social Council by two deputies, one senator, and one economic and social councilman. It is governed by