The storm, now a tropical depression, was moving slowly southwest toward the main Fiji islands of Vanua Levu and Viti Levu, the Australian-Pacific Centre for Emergency and Disaster Information (APCEDI) said in its weather alert.

APCEDI said although the storm was not immediately expected to develop into a cyclone, it "has the potential to bring flooding and flash flooding to low-lying and flood-prone areas".

Residents on southern Tonga islands were also warned to monitor the progression of the storm.

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