Commentary Sometimes you get more than one chance to make a first impression. So it is with the United States and Tonga—the small but important nation in the South Pacific that recently was hit by a volcanic eruption and tsunami. The United States was one of the first countries to sign a treaty with Tonga,…
First Aid Flights Arrive in Tonga After Big Volcano Eruption
WELLINGTON, New Zealand—The first flights carrying fresh water and other aid to Tonga finally arrived Thursday after the Pacific nation’s main airport runway was cleared of ash left by a huge volcanic eruption. New Zealand and Australia each sent military transport planes that were carrying water containers, kits for temporary shelters, generators, hygiene supplies and…
Cut Off by Volcano, Tongans Relieved as Contact Restored
BANGKOK—As the massive undersea Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha’apai volcano erupted on Saturday, Tongans from around the world gazed on as their relatives live-streamed images of billowing clouds of ash, gas, and steam emerging from beneath the depths. Then darkness. The eruption severed Tonga’s single fiber-optic cable, rendering the entire Pacific archipelago offline, and unable to…
Australia Sends Aid to Tsunami-Ravaged Tonga
Australia is deploying aircraft and a naval vessel to bring much needed humanitarian and disaster-relief aid to Tonga after a tsunami lashed the islands on Saturday. HMAS Adelaide will feature in the relief effort, bringing engineering and medical personnel and equipment, as well as helicopters to assist with logistics and distribution of humanitarian aid, Foreign…
Waves From Eruption in Tonga Cause Oil Spill in Peru
LIMA, Peru—Unusually high waves attributed to the eruption of an undersea volcano in Tonga caused an oil spill on the Peruvian coast, but authorities said Monday the spill was controlled within hours and there’s an ongoing process to clean the area. The Peruvian Civil Defense Institute said in a press release that a ship was…
Tsunami Wiped out Entire Villages on One Island, Killed 3 People: Tonga Govt
Entire villages on one of Tonga’s small outer islands have been wiped out by the tsunami that followed Saturday’s massive volcanic eruption, which killed at least three people, the Tongan government said on Tuesday in its first update since the tragedy struck. The three known fatalities from the tsunami are a 65-year-old woman on Mango…
All Homes on One of Tonga’s Islands Destroyed, Three Dead
SYDNEY/WELLINGTON—All the homes on one of Tonga’s small outer islands were destroyed in the massive volcanic eruption and tsunami, with three people so far confirmed dead, the government said on Tuesday in its first update since the disaster hit. With communications severely hampered by an undersea cable being severed, information on the scale of the…
Distress Beacon Detected From Smaller Tonga Island, Death Toll Rises to 2
The United Nations reported Monday that a distress beacon had been detected from a low-lying Tongan island following Saturday’s massive volcanic eruption, which triggered a tsunami that has killed at least two people. “An active distress beacon had been detected from Mango,” the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said, adding that…
British Woman Swept Away in Tonga Tsunami While Attempting to Rescue Dogs
Fears are mounting for the safety of a 50-year-old British woman who has been reported missing after being swept away by a 1.2-meter (3.9-foot) tsunami in Tonga on Saturday. The Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha’apai volcano eruption had caused tsunami waves to hit and flood parts of Tonga’s capital, Nuku’alofa. No fatalities or serious injuries have been reported as…
Tsunami-Hit Tonga in Need of ‘Immediate Assistance,’ Official Says
Tonga’s government has called for “immediate assistance” after a massive eruption by a nearby undersea volcano on Saturday, which was followed by a destructive tsunami, an official has said via satellite phone. The Australian and New Zealand governments dispatched surveillance flights to the Pacific island on Monday to help restore communications and assess the damage. Parliament Speaker…
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