PAPEETE (AFP) - THE Pacific island of Tahiti was placed on Red Alert and vulnerable residents were evacuated on Thursday as a powerful cyclone expected to bring seven-metre waves menaced the island, an official said.

Cyclone Oli, upgraded overnight from a tropical storm, is already drawing menacingly close to Bora Bora and Maupiti in the French Polynesian Leeward Islands, the High Commissioner said on Thursday. The two have experienced winds of more than 120 kilometres per hour and travel by car has been banned.

More than 650 tourists trapped on Bora Bora have been rehoused in hotels while every school in western Polynesia is closed. The population have been told to abandon primitive grass and mud dwellings and head to solid buildings such as town halls, schools or churches.

The High Commission - the territory's de facto government - has recommended 'staying at home or joining communal shelters'. The hospital told workers to remain at their posts for the coming 24 hours.

The High Commissioner - had warned the inhabitants of the two isolated Polynesian islands of Scilly and Mopelia to evacuate but they refused and are no longer reachable.

Tahiti and Moorea, on which the majority of Polynesians live, were put on red alert by the High Commission at 6pm on Wednesday (0600 GMT Thursday, 2pm Singapore time), and traffic was to be prohibited from 10pm (0800 GMT Thursday).

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