A storm has confined Northland school teacher Tom Macedru to his Fijian village since Sunday- he's even given up hope of flying back home tomorrow.
Torrential rain and flooding in Fiji's tourist belt at the end of his month-long holiday mean Mr Macedru cannot make his way to the NadiInternational Airport.
The severe weather claimed the lives of two farmers while hundreds of people have been evacuated in villages and the western towns of Sigatoka, Nadi, Ba, Tavua and Rakiraki.
Mr Macedru, from Navunivi Village, a 20-minute drive from Rakiraki on Viti Levu island, teaches music at Bay of Islands College. He hopes floodwaters will recede so he can at least get to Suva.
"It's been raining quite heavily over the last couple of days and although our village is not affected because it's on a hill, we can see floodwaters.
"There's no power in Rakiraki and I think we'll see a shortage of food."
His problem is compounded by the fact that he had had to hop on to a boat for a short journey to the main road before driving about two hours to the Nadi Airport.
Two cousins from Australia are also stranded after attending a funeral in the village.
Mr Macedru and a group of Fijians were expected to put together a band at this weekend's Ngapuhi music festival at the school. He has since arranged for another band to perform.
His wife Louise said she could hear rain thundering down when they spoke by phone yesterday.
"I see no way of him making it to the airport until floodwaters recede. The good thing is school starts after next week by which time he should come back home," she said.
Fiji's National Weather Forecasting Centre yesterday morning cancelled the severe wind warning but has predicted several more days of heavy rain and thunderstorms.
International flights are continuing, but the Air Pacific flight to Auckland yesterday ran over an hour behind.
