KEY POINTS:
New Zealanders holidaying in Fiji should stay put in their resorts as rising flood waters continue to cause chaos throughout the country, says Prime Minister John Key.
He said it was "the smart thing to do".
Flash flooding caused by days of heavy rain has left at least
eight people dead and thousands homeless.
Several hundred New Zealanders are stranded after being unable get to Nadi International Airport to catch scheduled flights home.
"There are some New Zealanders who are stranded in resorts and they are staying put in those resorts.
"We are confident that people can get out of Fiji. The airport is fully operational and Air New Zealand flights are fully operational in and out of Fiji," Mr Key said today.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Mfat) said today no New Zealanders had asked for the Government's help and no plans were being considered to send an air force plane to bring them home.
The Australian government said yesterday it was talking to airlines and officials in Fiji about getting Australian tourists home.
Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said he was concerned about the wellbeing of those affected.
Mr Key said Air New Zealand had plenty of spare seats and didn't have the capacity issues that Australia had experienced, but he would continue to monitor the situation.
Mr Key advised New Zealanders travelling to Fiji check the M fat website, which is being regularly updated with flood advice, and also check with travel agents.
The website said heavy rain had caused extensive flooding in the western, central and northern areas of Fiji, including in and around Nadi.
Several areas had been classified as disaster zones and several roads had been closed, including some in downtown Nadi.
Mr Key said sending aid would be considered if needed.
He said the floods were striking at a time when Fiji's economy was weak, coupled with the recent coup and political instability .
"I think we've actually taken a reasonable, constructive, cautious view with Fiji. We signed off on the Fiji Sevens team coming to play in Wellington, and we loosened the ban on sporting travel .
"We've tried to be constructive with (interim prime minister) Frank Bainimarama to have a good relationship with New Zealand."
Mr Key said he responded to all reasonable requests, but there had been some difficulties with Fiji.
"...We just want to see democratically held elections restored."
Travel agents in New Zealand said people planning a trip to Fiji were still planning to go ahead with their holiday.
House of Travel confirmed that only 10 people had cancelled out of 500 people who had booked to go to Fiji between January 1 and 20.
"Some people have re-booked to go elsewhere, and a further 18 people have postponed their trip to Fiji.
"We have contacted all our passengers and have given them the facts. It is then up to them to decide what they want to do next," said Brent Thomas, sales director at House of Travel.
Mr Thomas also confirmed that only one resort had stopped taking bookings, and another was suggesting postponing reservations.
Heavy rain and strong winds lashed Fiji's flood-devastated western region today, where the death toll from the worst storms in a generation rose to nine and thousands of residents huddled in emergency shelters.
International tourists in resorts on the western edge of the South Pacific nation were warned to stay inside, as one major airline arranged an extra flight to get people out.
A woman who jumped into a swollen river to escape a landslide was the ninth victim of the floods, police inspector Erami Raibe said.
"Stay where you are, and take extra care. That's what we're telling everyone," said Patiliai Dobui, the head of Fiji's Disaster Management Office.
Scores of homes in the business center of Nadi and other towns in the west of the main island of Viti Levu have been inundated by a brown tide of rising water since the first of a spate of tropical storms hit last Thursday. Officials on Tuesday posted the second severe flood warning in five days.
"This is the worst flooding situation in the recent history of Fiji," Meteorological Service director Rajendra Prasad told The Associated Press.
Prasad said new widespread flooding would be accompanied by strong 55 mph (90 kph) winds. The rain was expected to continue through Thursday at least.
"With rivers already spilling over their banks ... I don't expect the waters to recede for several days," he said.
The earlier deaths were six people who drowned and two who were killed in a landslide, authorities said. More than 6,000 people have been forced into emergency government shelters in schools and other public buildings. Sugar cane crops have been washed out, roads severed, and bridges submerged.
The government Monday declared a state of emergency in the hardest-hit western districts, where Fiji's international tourism industry is based.
There have been no reports of tourists in trouble, but Australia's national carrier Qantas arranged a special flight Wednesday to airlift stranded tourists from Nadi to Sydney.
Dobui said initial damage estimates totaled $12 million, but that figure didn't include the large agriculture sector.
In towns like Ba, many homes were submerged up to their roofs, he said.
"In Nadi, this is the worst flooding in the lifetime of most of the local people living there," Dobui told the AP.
- NZPA, AP
