An Australian Defence Force (ADF) plane will head to Vanuatu within days to deliver relief supplies to the small Pacific nation after it was devastated by this week's Cyclone Harold.
The week-long storm has destroyed homes, cut off power and killed dozens in four Pacific island countries. Local disaster teams in Vanuatu hope to reach some of the worst-affected areas today.
Glen Craig from the Vanuatu Business Resilience Council estimates up to 90 per cent of homes in the country's second largest town, Luganville, have been damaged.
"It's worse than what we thought," he said.
"People here are positive. I think they're still a bit shell-shocked at the moment but they know that help is coming but help will need to come fast.
Aid groups predict Vanuatu's recovery could take more than 12 months.
The ABC has been told the situation is "grim", with fears the damage in some places has been worse than Cyclone Pam, which hit Vanuatu in March 2015, killing at least 15 people and leaving the country with a damage bill of nearly $600 million — more than half of the country's annual GDP.
Kendra Gates Derousseau, the country director at World Vision in Vanuatu, told the ABC damage she had seen in Luganville and video of Pentecost Island, "indicate that the damage is significantly worse than tropical Cyclone Pam". "The body of Harold was smaller than Pam, so the damage is less expansive in terms of numbers of islands, but the islands that were hit — it almost looked like a tornado had ripped through Luganville," she said.
The ADF will deliver relief supplies such as blankets, lanterns, shelter and hygiene kits. Defence Minister Linda Reynolds said the assistance for Vanuatu was "part of our commitment to stand shoulder to shoulder during times of crisis."
Foreign Minister Marise Payne said there would likely be more assistance announced in the coming days.
"We are acutely conscious that this comes on top of the impact and difficulties created by COVID-19 for those countries and so our support is all the more important," Senator Payne said.
New Zealand announced on Wednesday it would provide $480,000 to Vanuatu to help rebuild after the cyclone.
According to Vanuatu's National Disaster Management Office, however, "no foreign personnel are being brought to Vanuatu for response efforts at the present time".
"This will be an internally run operation," it said.
Any crew unloading supplies would wear protective gear and remain on the runway, authorities said.