Three dead, hundreds displaced, Tonga calls Tsunami "unprecedented" crisis

After a large volcanic eruption created a tsunami and coated country of 100,000 people in thick volcanic ash, Tonga is facing unprecedented crisis.

Wednesday, 19th January 2022

Three dead, hundreds displaced, Tonga calls Tsunami "unprecedented" crisis

After a large volcanic eruption created a tsunami and coated country of 100,000 people in thick volcanic ash, the government of Tonga said the Pacific island nation is facing an "unprecedented disaster." The prime minister's office acknowledged the deaths of at least three individuals, including a British woman, in its first statement since the undersea volcano Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai erupted on Saturday. "A volcanic mushroom plume was emitted as a result of the eruption, reaching the stratosphere and stretching radially across all Tonga Islands, causing tsunami waves up to 15 metres (49 feet), hitting the west coasts of Tongatapu, 'Eua, and Ha'apai Islands," according to the statement. Additional rescue teams have been dispatched to Mango, Fonoifua, and Nomuka islands "because of the severity of the devastation observed," according to the administration. It reported that all of the houses on Mango, where a distress signal had been intercepted, had been demolished, and only two remained standing on Fonoifua, while Nomuka had suffered substantial damage. Tongan navy ships were dispatched to the damaged islands with supplies of water and food, as well as evacuation attempts from the worst-stricken areas. The eruption was the greatest since 1991's Pinatubo eruption in the Philippines, with the cataclysmic bang heard more than 750 kilometres (466 miles) distant in Fiji. Two naval ships from New Zealand are already on their way to Tonga, bringing rescue teams and equipment as well as supplies, and are scheduled to arrive on Friday, depending on weather conditions. "Tonga has a very strict COVID-free policy – they're one of the few countries in the world that has remained COVID-free," Jonathan Veitch, the UN coordinator in Fiji, told reporters on Wednesday morning. He added that the UN had just over 20 people on the ground who could organise any emergency response." "In terms of COVID-19, we will not do anything to jeopardise the safety of their protocols or the safety of their population because it would create us a lot more problems than we already have." Communication challenges after the eruption damaged the islands' undersea cable, as well as thick ash covering the runway at the country's principal airport, have delayed efforts to respond to the crisis. Efforts to clear the runway had made "pretty excellent progress," but not to the point where planes could land, and ash was still falling, according to Veitch. Despite the devastation on the coast and at the main port, he stated that ships could still dock. Meanwhile, the Red Cross has declared access to safe drinking water a "vital immediate priority."