Cyclone Jasper batters New Caledonia

Helene Hoffman

Last Updated: Wed, 25 Mar 2009 14:44:00 +1100

Heavy rains generated by Tropical Cyclone Jasper have cut off the roads linking the north and south of New Caledonia's main island.

The grade two weather system is over the coral sea about 150 kilometres off the west coast of Grande Terre and will begin veering west away from the coast in the next hour at a speed of 10 kilometres an hour.

The French territory has been experiencing days of bad weather that have forced the evacuation of about 25 families from tribes living in the remote northern tip of the main island.

A number of boarding schools have also been closed.

And Gonzague Delabourdonnaye, from the television station RFO New Caledonia, says there is more extreme weather to come.

"We should know this bad weather during two days more with better weather next Thursday, but not before."

The Joint Typhoon Warning Centre run by the US Navy in Hawaii says it expects wind speeds to reach 120 kilometres an hour in the next 48 hours.