Marines based in Okinawa, Japan, have been told to stand at the be ready to assist help with storm relief efforts in Vanuatu, a the South Pacific archipelago nation devastated by last week's cyclone.

There hasn't been a call for Marines to provide assistance in the wake of destruction caused by Cyclone Pam, but III Marine Expeditionary Force has readied a forward command element humanitarian service team. Chuck Little, a spokesman for Marine Corps Forces Pacific, said theis group, based in Okinawa, Japan, can determine what sort of military support could be best used in this disaster, should the U.S. military receive a request to help.

"It was a simple, 'Be prepared to support' order," Little said.

Cyclone Pam hit Vanuatu Fridayon March 13 with 150 mph gusts of wind, killing 11 people. Port Vila, the capital city, was hit particularly hard, and various reports said that 90 percent of the buildings there were either destroyed or damaged, with and 1,000 to 3,000 people evacuated.

The American Red Cross said that 80 percent of the water system in Port Vila was damaged. BBC news reported that some Vanuatu islanders have been forced to drink salt water as they waited for help to arrive.

In a March 16 interview with The Associated Press, Baldwin Lonsdale, the country's president, said Port Vila is the only part of the country under a state of emergency, but he was waiting for updates about the status of other provinces.

"This is a very devastating cyclone in Vanuatu," Lonsdale said. "I term it as a monster, a monster. It's a setback for the government and for the people of Vanuatu. After all the development that has taken place, all this development has been wiped out. So it means we will have to start anew again."

The American Red Cross sent a disaster specialist and $100,000 in assistance to Vanuatu, and the Christian Science Monitor reported that Australia, France, Britain and New Zealand are providing aid. The United Nations, as well as various private relief organizations, also said they are headed to Vanuatu to help.

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