Tsunami hits Tonga after giant volcano eruption and its aftermath

[Shiloh]

Source: https://www.trtworld.com/asia/thousands-affected-in-tonga-several-islands-seriously-damaged-53850

Thousands affected in Tonga, several islands seriously damaged
1 hour ago

About 84,000 people — more than 80 percent of Tonga's population — impacted by the volcano's eruption, UN officials say while Red Cross confirms serious damage to three small islands of the Pacific nation.
Tonga has not yet made clear its needs from the international community, and complicating matters is the country's concern over the possible spread of Covid-19.

Three of Tonga's smaller islands have suffered serious damage from tsunami waves, officials and the Red Cross said, as a wider picture begins to emerge of the destruction caused by the eruption of an undersea volcano near the Pacific archipelago nation.

UN humanitarian officials report that about 84,000 people — more than 80 percent of Tonga's population — have been impacted by the volcano's eruption, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Wednesday, pointing to three deaths, injuries, loss of homes, and polluted water.

Communications have been down throughout Tonga since the eruption on Saturday, but a ship made it to the outlying islands of Nomuka, Mango and Fonoifua on Wednesday, and reported back that few homes remain standing after settlements were hit with 49 feet -high waves, said Katie Greenwood, the head of delegation in the Pacific for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, which had two people aboard the vessel to help assess the damage...

 

[sharon sanders]

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[Shiloh]

Source: https://www.firstpost.com/world/ton...e-offered-to-the-pacific-nation-10316651.html

Tonga volcanic eruption: Scale of destruction and assistance offered to the Pacific nation
On 15 January, the powerful eruption of the Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha’apai volcano near the Pacific nation of Tonga sent tsunami waves around the world.
FP Staff
January 24, 2022 20:23:56 IST

On 15 January, the powerful eruption of the Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha’apai volcano near the Pacific nation of Tonga sent tsunami waves around the world.

According to NASA, the volcanic eruption was hundreds of times more powerful than the atomic bomb the US dropped on Hiroshima during World War II.

Even though the true scale of destruction is yet to be assessed, the eruption left three dead in its wake and an island nation in need of outside assistance to get back on its feet.

Let’s take a look at the scale of devastation and how international aid is arriving at the Pacific island:

How the eruption has affected life on Tonga

– Before the eruption of 15 January, the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcanic island was two separate islands joined by a new land that was formed in 2015. The eruption was so strong that the new land is gone along with parts of the two older islands.

– According to a BBC report, officials had feared water pollution as a thick blanket of volcanic ash covered water sources that increased the risk of diseases like cholera and diarrhoea. After testing in the last few days, officials cleared ground water and rainwater as safe to drink.

– However, fine volcanic ash continues to pose health risks. People may experience breathing difficulty due to the ash and it may also affect the cardiovascular system and irritate the eyes and skin.

– According to a statement released by the Tongan government, tiny islands of Mango and Fonoifua were among the worst affected as both suffered catastrophic damage.

– It said that all houses had been destroyed on Mango island and only two houses remain on Fonoifua.

– The Pacific archipelago was cut off after the eruption for five days as the explosions severed the sole fibre-optic sea cable bringing internet to the island.

Humanitarian aid for Tonga...

 

[sharon sanders]

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[Shiloh]

Source: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-07...-months-recovery-resettlement-mango/101216258

Six months after volcanic eruption and tsunami, Tongans who lost everything have plans for their future
Pacific Beat
By Annika Burgess and Adam Jacobson
Posted 34m ago

Reverend Kisina Toetu'u and his wife Maa'imoa will never forget the deafening blast and intensity of Tonga's undersea volcanic eruption.

Everything shook, then the sky started to turn dark.

"Everyone was just running and crying," Reverend Toetu'u told the ABC.

The explosion from the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano was the largest documented by researchers since 1883, triggering a tsunami that generated waves up to 15 metres high.

The people of Mango Island — one of the closest to the volcano — could see the giant waves approaching.

"We couldn't grab anything, we just ran," Reverend Toetu'u said.

An 81-year-old woman and a baby wearing nothing but a nappy were among the group that fled to the top of a hill where they remained for four days.

Below them, their entire island was flattened, covered in ash, and every home destroyed.

One man from the community was killed.

Six months on, the 62 evacuees remain living in a church hall on Tonga's main island Tongatapu — they will never resettle on the island they once called home...