The federal government is attempting to contact 17 Australians who have not been heard from since a tropical cyclone tore through Fiji's north this week.
Fifty-two Australians were registered as living in Fiji's northern division, which was thrashed by winds of up to 200km/h when tropical Cyclone Tomas hit on Monday night.
A Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman said the High Commission in Suva had contacted 35 Australians who were safe and well, but the remaining 17 were unaccounted for.
"However communications in the area are still down," he said.
Teams have been dispatched across Fiji to assess the extent of the damage caused by the category-four cyclone, which caused the evacuation of 17,000 people and destroyed at least 50 homes.
Fiji Red Cross disaster coordinator Vuli Gauna said 10 teams had been deployed to Vanua Levu to distribute basic supplies like tarpaulins, clothing and water containers around the country's second-largest island.
"The damage that we're anticipating is mostly in terms of houses being destroyed or partially damaged from wind," Mr Gauna said.
He said a navy ship would leave the capital on Wednesday to assess the damage to the northern island of Cikobia, and its 400 residents.
"They will be accompanied by a disaster relief team so we will be able to conduct an initial damage assessment."
The French Pacific islands of Wallis and Futuna were also battered by Tomas, with strong winds and heavy swells washing away the northern side of Futuna, Radio New Zealand reported.
The local schools on the islands were flooded and 80 per cent of the crops on Futuna, and half on Wallis have been wiped out, according to reports.
Senior weather forecaster for the Fiji Meteorological Service, Matt Boterhoven, said the cyclone had continued to weaken overnight and had passed the southern island of Ono I Lau.
"It's moving away from the Fiji group and it's accelerating," Mr Boterhoven told AAP.
He said gale force winds have eased, although Fiji will still feel still "strong, fresh winds" as Tomas headed out to sea.
He said the "thing to watch out for" would be moderate to heavy swells over the next couple of days, especially on the east coast.
"A lot of the storm surge when the cyclone went through caused a lot of damage in those islands out there and they just have to be cautious of the heavy swells," Mr Boterhoven said.
The Australian and New Zealand governments have dedicated up to $1 million in emergency assistance to Fiji, which was declared a state of disaster on Tuesday.
Australia and NZ also mobilised military aircraft for Fiji, and a NZ Air Force Hercules arrived in Suva on Wednesday morning with relief supplies.
On Wednesday all communications and power had been restored in the north-eastern islands of Vanua Levu and Taveuni, which had borne the brunt of the cyclone on Monday night.
International air services were back on full schedule although domestic flights had been suspended pending a check of local airfields, Tourism Fiji said.
With AAP
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