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After volcanic eruption – fear of Covid introduction makes relief operations in Tonga more difficult – News

26 January 20220

Relief operations are picking up speed eleven days after the volcanic eruption off the South Pacific island of Tonga.
Above all, drinking water treatment plants and material for the reconstruction of buildings are required.
Since Tonga, which has so far been free of corona, fears that the virus could be imported, relief supplies have to be delivered without contact with the residents.

The United Nations and the Red Cross warn of a coronavirus outbreak in Tonga: “In the current situation, this would be a disaster for the small island nation with its around 100,000 residents,” says Sione Taumoefolau, Secretary General of the Red Cross.

The fear is not unfounded: on a ship from Australia that arrived in Tonga on Wednesday, there were 29 corona cases in the crew.

Runway cleared of ash

The runway at Fua’amotu Airport has now been cleared of ash, allowing planes to safely land again, according to the Red Cross. The US has sent the naval ship USS Sampson with supplies. The Australian government is making more money available.

After the powerful eruption of the underwater volcano, the island kingdom of Tonga (here Nomuka in the picture) offers a picture of destruction.

Two workers drink coconut water from a coconut.

Two splashes of color in the grey: the clean-up work on Tonga is progressing slowly because of the amount of ash.

A car is completely covered in ash.

Because of the dense layer of ash that had covered everything, it was difficult to deliver aid for a long time.

Debris off the coast of Tonga.

After the runway at Fua’amotu Airport was cleared of ash, planes could land there again safely, the Red Cross said on Wednesday.

Red Cross workers load relief supplies.

The main requirements in Tonga are drinking water treatment plants and material for the reconstruction of buildings.

A Japanese loads relief supplies into a military ship.

Numerous countries, including Australia, New Zealand, the USA and Japan, have already sent aid.

Destroyed houses and a boat on dry land can be seen.

The submarine volcano Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha’apai shook the Pacific eleven days ago. According to the Tonga government, the eruption triggered a tsunami up to 15 meters high.

A road on the beach with palm trees is covered with ash.

The tsunami triggered by the eruption caused severe destruction in the South Pacific state. At least three people were killed.

The eruption of the submarine volcano Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha’apai in mid-January triggered a tsunami wave that wreaked havoc on islands in the Tonga archipelago. At least three people died. Peru declared an environmental emergency after an oil spill caused by the tsunami.

According to media reports, NASA said the eruption was several hundred times more powerful than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima. “This disaster has shaken the people of Tonga like nothing before,” said Taumoefolau of the Red Cross. “The tsunami destroyed houses and villages, we are rebuilding them in the midst of the ash.”