Cyclone assessment

Drones help Tonga's cyclone damage assessment

A fleet of the World Bank's drones, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, has been transported to Tonga with the support of the Australian government.

The Pacific regional representative for the World Bank, Michel Kerf, said the drones were being used to map the damage wreaked by Gita.

According to him, the mapping will be crucial to helping Tonga's government determine priority areas for recovery and reconstruction.

Tonga has received a payout of more than US$3.5 mill from the Pacific Catastrophe Risk Insurance Company.