Transcript
More than 7,000 people are already crammed into coastal evacuation centres, nearly two weeks after the volcano - Manaro Voui - started belching ash, smoke and occasional bursts of lava.
The general secretary of the Penama Provincial Government, Georgewin Garae, says locals are used to the volcano - one of the world's most active - but he's never seen anything like this before, even compared to the last big eruption in 2005.
GEORGEWIN GARAE: It's much worser [sic] than 2005 because the eruption is continuous. It sometimes stops, but when it starts it is continuous and also we are experiencing more ash fall.
The volcano has blanketed most of the island in ash, contaminating an already fragile water supply, choking crops and food gardens, as well as forcing people to flee towards the coast.
They've been packed into schools and community halls, running short of food and water, and in conditions far from sanitary.
But with Manaro Voui rumbling above and showing no signs of abating, the government yesterday made the decision to evacuate the whole island - 11,000 people.
Mr Garae says people are devastated.
GEORGEWIN GARAE: It is very devastating, it is very sad, the information that was going out yesterday notifying people of the move, people were crying. But then the understanding is that safety comes first.
The disaster coordinator on Ambae, Manuel Ure, says ferries, trawlers and other vessels are making their way to Ambae to help with the evacuation.
Children, the elderly and the disabled will be first when evacuations start on Saturday, and Mr Ure says he hopes all 11,000 people will be gone by the middle of next week.
MANUEL URE: A few people have already made personal arrangements to travel out from Ambae to their families in either Port Vila or Santo or the other islands, but the provincial arrangement, we are waiting [for] ships to come in and are hoping that we can evacuate most people probably during the weekend.
The evacuees will be scattered around the nearby islands of Santo, Pentecost, Malekula and Maewo, where the government is opening its land, and some custom chiefs have offered theirs.
A leader in the Malbangbang area of southern Pentecost, Robinson Tema, says his chiefs have made the decision to accept about 500 evacuees.
He says villagers are clearing out Nakamals and churches, readying for their arrival.
ROBINSON TEMA: The area that I'm living in they have lots of rivers. Maybe with food we need help from the government to support us with food to feed the people who will be coming from Ambae.
Robinson Tema says he doesn't know how long the people will be staying - no one does. Just as no one knows whether a major volcanic eruption will occur on Ambae.
