On the “HMAS Adelaide”, which is en route to Tonga’s capital Nuku’alofa, 23 crew members tested positive for the corona virus, the Canberra government announced on Tuesday.
Tonga is one of the few places in the world where the virus has not yet spread. Australia’s Defense Minister Peter Dutton said the relief efforts should not endanger that.
The ship is now to remain at sea until talks with Tonga’s authorities have decided whether the crew should try to deliver the aid “contactless”. “We will not endanger Tonga’s people, but at the same time we want to provide help as quickly as possible,” Dutton said on Sky News Australia.
First aid deliveries have already arrived
New Zealand, Japan, China and France are also involved in the relief effort for Tonga. First aid flights had already landed in the Pacific country last week. In order not to introduce the virus, the crews only stayed on the ground for a short time.
Islanders have lost everything
The eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano in mid-January was one of the most severe in decades. The eruption caused tidal waves in Tonga and on distant coasts from Japan to the United States. The island of Mango, which belongs to Tonga, was hit the hardest. Among the three confirmed fatalities is a man from the island. Because the tsunami destroyed all the houses, the 62 remaining residents were taken to the main island of Tongatapu.
81-year-old Kalisi Levani said the volcanic eruption shook the whole island and the sky turned black. “We all ran and didn’t take anything with us.” The islanders fled to a small hill, the only high point on the island. She only managed it with the help of her son-in-law. “I told him to drop me off because if I don’t die from the tsunami, I’ll die of exhaustion.”
Father Kisina Toetu’u said the islanders prayed all night. Women and children would have sought protection from the ash rain under a mat. ‘It wasn’t until the next morning that some men went down as a search party to look for our missing person. They saw the devastation and that there was nothing left.”
When asked if residents will return to the island, Toetu’u said, “Not in the near future.” All the houses on the island were destroyed, “there is nothing left.”