Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) flights returned Australian citizens from the island as part of the ongoing humanitarian mission in Vanuatu’s capital Port Vila.

The flights have taken 588 Australians in total to Brisbane on eight flights and the final two flights will operate today.

Port Vila International Airport has now opened for commercial flights following closure due to damage from the earthquake.

Grounded Qantas, Virgin and Jetstar flights have now resumed to and from Port Vila to help remaining Australian passengers wanting to return home.

Qantas and Virgin will resume their flights from Port Vila to Brisbane today, while Jetstar will start flying customers on the same route tomorrow.

It’s understood new bookings won’t be open until after Christmas.

Search and rescue operations have mostly finished and Australian teams deployed to the island are now focussed on assessing the damage.

Support includes a 64-person disaster assistance response team, two canines, a six-person medical assistance team, nine Australian Federal Police members and a five-person team from DFAT.

The magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck Port Vila on Tuesday, causing mass damage, casualties and injuries.

Vanuatu was then rocked by a second earthquake on Wednesday, even as rescuers shoveled away rubble to reach trapped survivors. 

The second quake was measured at magnitude 6 and struck at a depth of 72km.

A major health crisis is also developing as aid workers estimate 20,000 people have been left without clean water.

About 1000 people are estimated to have been displaced by the earthquake, according to the United Nations.