'High' chance of second Pacific cyclone in a week

WELLINGTON: Meteorologists in the Pacific were keeping a close watch on a developing tropical storm near the Solomon Islands on Friday amid concerns it would develop into the region's second cyclone in a week.

On its present path the storm would head south brushing New Caledonia and New Zealand. It was intensifying as a clearer picture emerged of the toll on Tonga where Cyclone Ian carved a trail of destruction through its Ha'apai islands group last weekend, leaving thousands homeless and destroying food supplies.