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CycloneLoading…
Alerts across French Polynesia
The map above is Météo-France’s own, live (in French: vert = green, jaune = yellow, rouge = red). Alert map ↗ · Cyclone alert ↗
What to do, phase by phase
Official announcements on the radio and TV use the French names, shown in brackets.
Cyclone season (veille)November to April, no threat within 72 hours
- Check your tools, first-aid supplies, emergency lighting, equipment, food stocks and radio.
- Trim trees close to the house.
- Reinforce the house (roof, doors and windows).
- Prepare your emergency kit (list below).
Cyclone advisory (mise en garde)Possible threat within 72 hours
A storm system could hit part of French Polynesia within 3 days. The weather is not necessarily bad yet.
- Follow the news (radio, Météo-France, High Commission).
- Finish your seasonal preparations and complete your emergency kit.
Cyclone pre-alert (pré-alerte)Danger in less than 48 hours
- Pick up the children.
- Stock up on water and food.
- Double the mooring lines on boats.
- Store fuel in a safe place.
- Cover and secure anything that could blow away; isolate electrical installations.
- Listen to the news on radio and TV.
- Forbidden: going far from home, going out to sea.
Cyclone alert (alerte)Imminent danger, within 12 to 18 hours
Sustained winds above 100 km/h are possible. The ban on travel is announced 6 hours before it takes effect, to give time to get home or reach a shelter.
- Protect the house: reinforce doors and windows, bring objects inside.
- Protect clothes, food and medicines.
- Put your documents and valuables in a safe place.
- Shelter in the safest room of the house. Cyclone shelters: ask your town hall (mairie).
During the cycloneDanger
- Do not go outside under any circumstances.
- Put out naked flames and turn off the gas.
- Switch off the power.
- Listen to the news on the radio.
Safeguard phase (sauvegarde)After it has passed, dangers remain
Blocked roads, fallen trees, power lines down, flooding, landslides: rescue teams are at work and the travel ban may remain in force.
- Listen to the radio and respect the travel ban if it is maintained.
- Call the emergency services if someone is injured.
- Stay careful if travel is allowed again: obstacles can appear suddenly.
- Do not go near a power line on the ground, and report it.
End of alert (fin d’alerte)Back to standby
- Report casualties, damage and your needs to your town hall.
- Drink bottled water, not tap water, until it is declared safe to drink.
- Keep away from power lines and rivers.
- Report broken poles and fallen lines to EDT.
Guidance from the French High Commission in French Polynesia (Etalab 2.0 licence), summarised and translated by Mata Fenua. Official guidance (in French) ↗
My emergency kit
Water, power and phone lines can be cut for several days. Tick what is ready: it is saved on this phone.
Keep it somewhere easy to reach, and not too heavy: you may have to walk with it.
Useful numbers
When you call: say who you are (and a number to call you back), exactly where you are, and why you are calling. When a cyclone is approaching, only call for emergencies so the lines don’t get saturated.