UPDATED 12.12pm: Tauranga yachtsman Simon Hamer is safe and well following the devastating effects of Cyclone Pam in Vanuatu.

Simon's son, Barnaby, contacted SunLive to say: "My dad has been in contact now and he is fine. So is the boat."

South Sea Vagabond in Townsville.

Earlier:

Family and friends of Tauranga yachtsman Simon Hamer are anxiously awaiting news of his whereabouts and wellbeing from Vanuatu.

Simon operates a charter catamaran out of the capital, Port Vila, and has not been heard from since Thursday, shortly before category five Cyclone Pam struck the island.

Simon beached the 18m catamaran South Sea Vagabond near the Port Havannah Beach and Boat Club before the cyclone struck, says his wife Corinne Hamer today.

'I'm not sure what's happening,” says Corinne. 'There's a facebook page started, and someone said there hadn't been any deaths on that side of the island.

'One of the villages is very close to the sea and close lying. The last time I spoke to him the paper was saying for the whole week that it (Cyclone Pam) didn't pose any threat. And then he showed them pictures of the cyclone coming, otherwise they wouldn't have believed him.

'One of the villages got evacuated at Laleta, which was probably a good thing, so he might have helped to save a few lives there. Everyone was evacuated from there.

'Tanelo is very close to Havannah resort and apparently they all survived.”

Simon hauled South Sea Vagabond up onto the beach using a digger and air bags, but Corinne doesn't know how far out of the water it was hauled.

'It will be interesting to hear how big the swell got,” says Corrine.

There are three relevant Facebook pages - Humans of Vanuatu, Vanuatu Cyclone Pam 2015 Find My Family and Vanuatu Cyclone Pam.

Information from the sites indicate there have been no deaths on the Port Havannah side of the island, says Corinne.

The road round the island is blocked and bridges are out.

Corrine is going to contact the High Commission today, after Simon registered with them last week.

South sea Vagabond was built in a shed beside the Wairoa River and launched there in 2000. Before the rig was added, South Sea Vagabond became a familiar site in Tauranga, hosting dive charter operations, dolphin watches and Mayor Island trips.