New Zealand Foreign Affairs Ministry staff are working around the clock to find at least 500 New Zealanders unaccounted for after tsunamis created by the devastating earthquake in Indonesia on Sunday swamped resort islands in southern Asia, The Dominion Post reported Wednesday.
Ministry's spokesman James Kember told the paper that Foreign Affairs Minister Phil Goff had called in as many staff as possible to work their way through a list of about 700 people, most of whom were thought to be in Thailand.
By Tuesday night, about 200 people had been "crossed off the list" as safe. However, another 300 names could be added to the list after inquiries from relatives.
One New Zealander has been confirmed dead in Thailand's southern resort of Phuket following a massive earthquake and tsunami that has devastated southeast Asia.
The New Zealand government sent an air force C130 Hercules Tuesday to help with the relief efforts in Asia. The plane was joining the Australian Air Force in Darwin, most likely transporting supplies and evacuating people.
Goff has also announced a 500,000 NZ dollars (about US$355,000) donation to Red Cross and said the government was looking at further contributions.
Two Foreign Affairs Ministry staff, one who had been holidaying in Thailand and the other in Singapore, have been sent to Phuket to help find New Zealanders. Bangkok-based New Zealand police officer Mike Bush is in Phuket to act as the first port of call for Kiwis wanting to touch base with home.
Kember said a "league of nations" had been set up in the town center for tourists to find their country's representatives but things were chaotic.
"There's been a lot of damage to water and sewage and landlines, which is making communications extremely difficult," he said.