Islands covered in ashes, dozens of houses destroyed
According to a Tongan Government press release on Tuesday, the three people killed were a British citizen and two Tongan nationals.
United Nations World Health Organization, WHO, reported that many people were still missing, while about 90 people had reached safety in evacuation centers on the island of Eua, and many more fled to the homes of friends and family.
On the main island of Tongatapu, about 100 houses have been damaged and 50 have been completely destroyed, according to the United Nations office for humanitarian coordination, OCHA, updated journalists in Geneva on Tuesday.
The agency indicated that it is still in the process of gathering information on the extent of the destruction and has not been able to contact any of the islands of the Ha’apai et Vava’u chain.
OCHA spokesman Jens Laerke said the islands of Mango and Fonoi, which are part of the Ha’apai chain, were a particular cause for concern, with surveillance flights showing widespread damage to buildings, and images from the United Nations Satellite Center (UNOSAT) show that, on the small island of Nomuka, one of the closest volcanoes to the Hunga Tonga volcano Hunga Ha’apai, 41 of 104 possible structures Sights were damaged and almost all covered with ash, although the Center notes that this assessment is still being verified by teams on the ground.
WHO spokesman, Christian Lindmeier, told journalists on Tuesday that Tongatapu was covered in about 2cm of dust and volcanic ash, raising concerns about contamination of air, water and food.
There is some positive news, he added: all medical facilities on the main island are fully operational and cleanup operations have begun.
Biggest eruption in 3 decades
The largest volcanic eruption recorded in thirty years. A huge mushroom cloud of smoke and ash 20 kilometers high was followed by a tsunami, and the eruption was heard as far as Australia and New Zealand, triggering tsunami warnings across the Pacific.
Waves as high as 1.2 meters crashed into the capital Nuku’alofa, where its inhabitants fled to high ground, leaving houses flooded, while rocks and ash fell from the sky. falling.
WHO reports that the Government of Tongan responded quickly to the crisis, deploying a warship to the Ha’api Islands, with a team from the WHO-trained Tonga Emergency Medical Assistance Team on board, ready to help the injured.
The government is advising Tongan people to stay indoors, wear masks if they have to go out and drink bottled water to avoid health risks from falling ash.
© New Zealand Defense Force
Image over the Tonga Islands where dense ash fell from a recent volcanic eruption.
The emergency relief effort is being coordinated by the Humanitarian Group of the Pacific (PHT), which includes agencies of the United Nations, the Red Cross and international NGOs, organizing on-site and remote support for the Government of Tongan.
The group’s priorities are helping to re-establish communications, find ways to transport emergency aid, and provide technical advice on issues such as ensuring the safety of drinking water supplies, which have been severely impacted. weighted by volcanic ash.
Initial estimates of the scale of the crisis were relayed by WHO country liaison officer Dr. Yutaro Setoya, whose satellite phone is one of the few sources of information from the island nation.
International phone and internet services remain unreliable, after vital underwater communication cables were cut during the eruption. It is estimated that it will take several weeks to repair the cable.
Sean Casey, WHO Health Group Coordinator for the Pacific, said: “Yuta stood outside from dawn until late at night to make sure that the phone could reach the satellite signal and that he was can convey important information.
“All of us here at WHO, and in the wider United Nations family, are thinking of Tonga right now and doing what we can to support the government’s response efforts.”
More on this developing story later.
