New Zealand military to return from cyclone-battered Fiji

New Zealand's military is winding up one of its biggest ever peacetime deployments in the Pacific with the end of a seven-week humanitarian operation in cyclone-battered Fiji.

About 300 New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) personnel would return Thursday on multi-purpose vessel HMNZS Canterbury, which served as the maritime hub of New Zealand operation in Fiji's northern outlying islands, the NZDF said Monday.

"With their help, the Fiji government was able to repair dozens of schools, medical facilities and community buildings, deliver food and other essential aid supplies to remote communities devastated by the cyclone, and restore access to safe drinking water," Major General Tim Gall, Commander Joint Forces New Zealand, said in a statement.

The NZDF deployed close to 500 personnel in the international aid effort in Fiji after Tropical Cyclone Winston tore through the Pacific nation on Feb. 20.

Around 150 combat engineers, environmental health and logistics specialists, and medical personnel were among those deployed, along with two ships and seven aircraft.

"Effective collaboration with the Republic of Fiji Military Forces, the Australian Defence Force, and the French military was vital to the success of our operation," said Gall.

The cyclone killed at least 42 people, and damaged or destroyed thousands of homes and other buildings.

Source: Xinhua