United Press International: The first great natural disaster of the year in the Asia-Pacific region was the series of flooding disasters which struck Fiji, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines during the early weeks of January. A minor flooding calamity also hit Brunei. The Western Division of Fiji’s Viti Levu, the country’s largest island, was badly affected by the flooding. At least 10,000 people were housed in schools used as temporary shelters. Water and electricity services were scarce in some parts of …