Government officials said Wednesday the flooding showed how vulnerable the western Pacific atoll nation is to very small changes in weather conditions.

The islands have been pounded three times in the past two weeks by powerful waves caused by storm surges that coincided with high tides, swamping the main urban centres of Majuro and Ebeye that are less than a metre above sea level.

Houses and roads were damaged but the torrent also destroyed cemeteries, "contributing to the already alarming sanitary conditions with the widespread debris caused by the high wave action," President Litokwa Tomeing said.

Tomeing, who declared the state of emergency, said at least 600 people were forced to take refuge in government-designated shelters, churches, and with other family members.

Deborah Manase, deputy director of the Office of Environmental Planning and Policy Coordination, said damage had been caused despite the waves that crashed into the islands being "quite small" at about five feet.

"It shows that we're extremely vulnerable," she said.

"If the tide had been two feet higher, it would have been much worse.

"At the global level, we're trying to explain that the smallest change in sea levels will have a big impact on our islands."

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