The shattering of a Tauranga couple's tropic island idyll is underscored by the second major hurricane to strike the island of Vieques in as many weeks.

Messages today from Donna Bennet and Chris Isherwood confirm they survived hurricane Maria, but that the place is a 'total train wreck” which suffered huge damage.

Donna managed to get a message out to her daughters this morning.

'Just got word this morning that mum and Chris are all ok! She was saying it's looking like a war zone outside and water came in under the doors and spread throughout their house. So frightening! Sounds like it's going to be a pretty big clean-up for everyone on the island. Super relieved to know that they're both all right!” says a message from Leigh-Ann today.

The house got flooded, and windows broken, but it is nothing compared to what has happened to others around them.

When hurricane Irma passed north of Vieques ten days ago, they lost power and were incommunicado for some hours afterwards.

Donna is a former Tauranga Volunteer coastguard training officer and Chris Isherwood the BOP Regional Council deputy harbourmaster. They planned to spend some months on Vieques, which lies about 13km east of the main island of Puerto Rico. It has a population of about 10,000.

Hurricane Maria struck the island Thursday before moving on to Puerto Rico where it caused major damage, leaving the population of 3.4 million without power today.

While there are many reports on the damage done to Puerto Rico itself by hurricane Maria, there are none from Vieques.