GIZO - Supplies, including food and clean water, are reaching victims of a tsunami and earthquake in the Solomon Islands, the Red Cross said.

Nearly 7,000 people were left homeless and at least 39 killed a week ago when a powerful earthquake shook the area and then caused a tsunami that swept ashore the western part of the islands.

Rescue workers repaired the airport at Gizo, allowing for the regular deliver of food, water and medicine, the BBC reported. Clinics were being set up to ward off outbreaks of diseases such as malaria and dysentery.

Many former beach residents remained in the hills to return home to lower ground for fear of another tsunami, Red Cross spokeswoman Susie Chippendale told the BBC.

All residents in the area need tents, mosquito netting and tools for rebuilding and clearing land, she said.

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