06 January 2004, Sydney 12:00 EDT
The eyewall of Super Cyclone Heta is continuing to make a beeline for Niue as it pulls away from Tonga. Lots of reports are now coming in from American Samoa and to a lesser extent from Samoa.

The following will be a country by country assessment.

American Samoa: A state of emergency has been declared by Acting Governor Aitofele Sunia. No deaths and one serious injury has been reported (electrocution from downed powerline). Airport Terminal has lost much of its roof. Widespread moderate

Australian officials in Canberra, Fiji, Samoa, Tonga and New Zealand continue to closely monitor the progress of Cyclone Heta, which formed on 1 January 2004.

Australia stands ready, in coordination with FRANZ partners, France and New Zealand, to assist any Pacific Nation in assessment of, and response to, damage caused by the cyclone.

At 8.00am (AEDT), Tuesday 6 January, Cyclone Heta, a category four cyclone, was about 170 nautical miles northwest of Niue and 160 nautical miles northeast of Vava'u, Tonga.

Overnight, Cyclone Heta passed close

05 January 2004, Sydney 09:00 EDT
Cyclone Heta rapidly gained strength overnight and is now a dangerous Category 4 storm. It has however picked up some forward speed and is now moving south-southeast at 9 knots. The centre now lies equidistant between Wallis Island and Savai'i, Samoa's western-most island. This is actually the best possible scenario for both islands as it means that neither one will receive the full brunt of the storm. However, now that the overall strength has increased, both Wallis and Savai'i will likely get significant gales and rain which