8 Jan 2019

Solomons police say people ignoring weather warnings

4:21 pm on 8 January 2019

Police in Solomon Islands are concerned that people have taken bad weather warnings lightly over the past few weeks.

Weeks of unrelenting rain has unleashed floods across much of the Solomon Islands. Loti Yates says the rainy season is becoming increasingly so.

Weeks of unrelenting rain has unleashed floods across much of the Solomon Islands. Loti Yates says the rainy season is becoming increasingly so. Photo: The Island Sun

Supervising Commissioner Juanita Matanga said she had come across a number of reports on missing boats and she made an appeal for people to take heed of warnings that are broadcast and printed in local media because they save lives.

She said people should also not attempt to cross rivers and large streams of unknown depth and should consider their safety as a priority.

The Supervising Commissioner said it was a challenge to conduct search and rescues during bad weather and the chances of finding people is very slim when there is bad weather and poor visibility.

The comments come as police continue to search for three men who went missing in Gizo after their boat capsized in rough seas on New Year's Eve.