Updated Good Friday 
06 April 2007 

Cyclone Cliff changed it's course during the night 
It bypassed Nuku'alofa and is now "blowing itself out" somewhere at sea. There were high winds but Letio Faka-Kalisitiane 93FM is not damaged and there are no reports of death or major damage. (Although one person died in neighboring Fiji.)

Malo 'Aupito (Thank you, in Tongan language) 
Malo 'Aupito Lord, for protecting Tonga and the station.

And Malo 'Aupito to you too for praying . Cyclones are common in the Islands, and while Cliff wasn't a big one, our 100 foot antenna tower is one of the tallest things on this flat island. So we never take any cyclone warning for granted. 

Please pray for the USD $4,500 needed (as quoted by a local tradesman) to replace the wooden building that houses the sensitive transmission equipment before any more big winds visit Tonga.

Koe'uhi koe kakai 'ihe ngaahi motu 'oe Pasifiki 'oku nau fiema'u 'a Sisu 
(Because the Islands need Jesus, in Tongan language) . 

Loni has just phoned me from Letio Faka-Kalisitiane 93FM in Tonga to say that Cyclone Cliff is due to hit Nuku'alofa (Tonga's capital) in about 4 hours time. (That's 4:00am Good Friday in Tonga, 8:00am Thursday, PST in the USA). Our radio staff are busy preparing the station for the worst - tying down the roof, nailing shutters to windows, filling up on enough diesel to keep the generator running for several days if necessary, etc. 

Please pray for Tonga 
When Loni phoned, Cyclone Cliff is pounding the Ha'apai group of islands in the middle of Tonga and moving south in a direct path to Tonga's main Island of Tongatapu, which is home to about 60,000 people. Tongatapu is a very flat and low-lying island - easy for high winds to push sea water inland, damaging crops and making the land too sour to use for gardening. 
Please pray for the storm to turn away and blow out to sea, so the worst damage can be avoided. 

And please pray for the station 
Do you remember the cyclone that blew down our FM antenna and our wooden transmitter hut about this time last year? It drenched our transmitter equipment and we were off air for several days. We expected to have the USD $4,500 dollars needed to build a new, concrete transmitter hut last year, so we made only temporary repairs to the old wooden one. But - the year has gone by and we haven't had enough money to replace the hut. And here comes another big storm! Loni is concerned about the tower and the transmitter equipment. 
Letio Faka-Kalisitiane 93FM cannot broadcast at all if this is damaged. 
. 
I will let you know what happens tomorrow.