A third Pacific island with a population of 1,000 people has not been heard from since Cyclone Zoe swept through the region a week ago, according to the French embassy in Vanuatu.
Embassy spokesman Mr Patrick Buzaud said a French navy helicopter had been sent from the Vanuatu capital of Port Vila to determine the fate of Mota Lava island.
He said there was serious concern for the people of Motu Lava because there had been no contact from the island since the cyclone.
Mota Lava, home to around 1,000 people, is just 200 kilometres southwest of the Polynesian island of Tikopia, which was devastated by Zoe on the weekend.
About 3,000 people on Tikopia and nearby Anuta have not been heard from since the cyclone and ships carrying medical and other relief supplies have only just started their journey to the remote islands.
Surveillance flights over Tikopia have shown scenes of devastation, with some villages apparently wiped away.
AFP