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JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – Tonga is a nation of government with a population of 104,494 souls and is now ruled by King Tupou VI. The archipelago consists of 176 islands, 36 of which are uninhabited. The main island of Tongatapu is home to Tonga’s capital, Nuku’alofa.
In early 2022, the world was shocked by natural disaster terrible thing that befell Tonga as reported Between, Sunday (23/1/2022).
The underwater volcano Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai which is about 65 kilometers from Nuku’alofa erupted on Saturday, January 15, at 17:10 local time and caused tsunami.
Also read: Peru declares environmental emergency status over oil spill due to eruption in Tonga
The volcano has erupted frequently in recent decades. But Saturday’s eruption was so intense that its boom was heard as far away as New Zealand, 2,383 kilometers from the mountain.
Satellite images captured the volcanic eruption as it blew plumes of smoke into the air about 19.3 kilometers above sea level. The sky above Tonga was instantly darkened by ashes.
The Goddard Space Flight Center of the United States Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) said the force of the eruption was estimated to be equivalent to five to 10 megatons of a TNT bomb.
That power is more than 500 times the power of the atomic bomb dropped by the United States (US) on the city of Hiroshima, Japan, at the end of World War II.
New Zealand volcanologist Shane Cronin said preliminary data showed the eruption was the largest since the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines 30 years ago.
Also read: Successfully Swim 27 Hours After the Tsunami, This Tongan Man is Nicknamed Aquaman
Impact
The massive eruption and tsunami in Tonga caused a lot of damage and loss to many parties, especially local residents.
The most severe damage was reported along the west coast of Tongatapu, where many boats and boats are said to have washed ashore. Tongatapu has many tourist resorts on the seaside of Nuku’alofa.
On the island of Atata, about 8 kilometers northwest of Nuku’alofa and can be reached in 30 minutes by boat, it was almost completely destroyed by the tsunami.
On the island of Fonoifua, only two houses remained, while on the island of Mango, one village was destroyed. The beach resort of Ha’atafu on the Hihifo peninsula, 21 kilometers west of Nuku’alofa, was also completely destroyed by the waves.
Atata and Mango islands are located about 50 to 70 kilometers from the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai mountains, and have a population of 100 and 50 people, respectively.
Satellite images uploaded by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) show damage to a number of structures on the island of Nomuka. The Tongan Navy also reported heavy damage on the island of Ha’apai, which was hit by waves as high as five to 10 meters.
Also read: The Story of Tongans Faced with Volcano Eruption and Tsunami: Only the Church Still Stands
The Tongan government confirmed that there were three fatalities in the eruption and tsunami disaster: a 65-year-old woman on Mango Island, a 49-year-old man on Nomuka Island, and a British citizen. Several people were also reported to have been injured.
The United Nations says around 84,000 people, or more than 80 percent of Tonga’s population, have been affected by the disaster and that fuel shortages are inevitable.
Not only that, the underwater telecommunications cable that connects Tonga with other parts of the world is also damaged and may not be able to be restored in a month or so according to Tonga Cable Ltd.
Telecom operator Digicel said its domestic network was active and that it was currently concentrating its efforts on improving international connections.
The Latin American country, Peru, was also affected. Oil from a tanker at the La Pampilla refinery spills into the sea, thought to be the result of huge waves caused by a volcanic eruption in Tonga.
The Peruvian government said the oil spill endangered the life of flora and fauna in the protected zone in an area of 18,000 square kilometers around the island and fishing grounds. According to information, about 6,000 barrels of oil have polluted the waters.
Also read: Efforts to Send Aid to Tonga Haunted by the Threat of Covid-19 Infection
Kabar WNI
This combination of satellite images provided by Maxar Technologies shows an overview of the Hunga Tonga volcano Hunga Ha’apai in Tonga on January 18, 2022 (top), and shows what remains after the January 15 eruption (bottom).-
Director of Protection for Indonesian Citizens at the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Judha Nugraha, said that there were six Indonesian citizens in Tonga who had been in contact with Indonesian representatives in Wellington and were safe.
Three of them work as crew members (ABK), one person is a liaison for the Indonesian Embassy in Wellington, while the other two have not yet confirmed their profession.
The Indonesian Embassy in Wellington has conveyed a warning to all Indonesian citizens in its accreditation area.
His party also continues to coordinate and communicate with various parties in New Zealand and Tonga to find out the condition of Indonesian citizens in Tonga.
Also read: A number of people feared missing, Tonga government declares extraordinary disaster
Help
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Tonga had requested emergency assistance and the UN was in close communication with the authorities in Tonga.
Reported from Xinhua, The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) also sent aid for washing equipment, recreational equipment, jerry cans, buckets, and other necessities to Tonga on Friday (21/1/2022).
Australia and New Zealand have also sent monitoring planes to assess the damage and assess the situation on Tonga’s outer islands, where communication lines are completely dead.
The first flights from Australia and New Zealand landed in Tonga on Thursday (20/1/2022) with supplies of much-needed water for sanitation and hygiene as well as shelter, communications equipment and electricity generators.
Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said Australia’s $1 million cash donation to Tonga needed to be followed by more substantial support for the country’s recovery.
He added that New Zealand and Fiji are also working with Tonga to deal with the post-disaster situation.
Also read: PHOTO: Tonga sightings before and after the volcanic eruption, now covered in thick ash
Meanwhile, New Zealand Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta said his air force had also sent a C-130 Hercules plane from Auckland. According to him, the delivery of aid will be done without physical contact.
Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Zhao said the Chinese Red Cross Organization provided emergency humanitarian assistance to Tonga in the form of $100,000 in cash (approximately Rp 1.43 billion).
Additional naval vessels from Australia, New Zealand and the UK are also en route to Tonga to deliver aid.
Two humanitarian aid flights from Japan and New Zealand arrived on Saturday, after two flights from Australia landed on Friday evening.
Australia and New Zealand are coordinating international relief efforts with support from the UK, France, US, Fiji and Papua New Guinea.
The government of Tonga is grateful to the international community for their assistance, including US$8 million (approximately Rp. 114 billion) from the World Bank and US$10 million (approximately Rp. 143.4 billion) from the Asian Development Bank.
Also read: First Pictures of Tonga After Eruption Show Scale of Damage
Current Condition
An aerial view of a cleaning crew working to remove oil from the annexed beach to the summer resort town of Ancon, northern Lima, Thursday (20/1/2022). The activity was carried out after an oil spill occurred during the process of unloading the Italian-flagged tanker Mare Doricum at La Kilang Pampilla due to abnormal waves recorded after a volcanic eruption in Tonga.-
Currently people in Tonga are seen queuing up to use the limited money transfer service in the capital after repairs were made. Meanwhile, post-eruption clean-up is still ongoing.
The Tongan government said drinking water was a priority and the national emergency team had distributed 60,000 liters of water to residents.
A desalination plant on board a New Zealand Navy vessel, capable of producing 70,000 liters of clean water a day, has also started drawing seawater from the port of Tonga.
Telephone lines between Tonga and the world were also reconnected on Wednesday evening (19/1/2022), but restoration of internet connectivity may take a month or more.
Also read: Undersea cable breaks, communications from Tonga could be cut off for weeks
According to the Tongan prime minister’s office, people who lost their homes due to the tsunami will be relocated to Tongatapu.
An on-site emergency hospital has also been set up on Nomuka Island after the on-site health center was swept away by the tsunami.
Tonga is concerned about the risk of spreading Covid-19 by sending aid to the virus-free island.
The deputy head of the Tonga mission in Australia Curtis Tu’ihalangingie said any aid sent to Tonga would go through a quarantine process. And probably no foreign personnel were allowed to get off the plane.
Also read: Tonga Tsunami: Body of Missing British Woman Found, Dies While Saving Her Dog
Viral
There is a viral story behind the Tonga disaster. Lisala Folau, a 57-year-old Tongan man, admitted to swimming about 27 hours after being swept into the ocean during the devastating tsunami.
He is touted as Aquaman in real life. The story has since gone viral on social media.
Folau is a resident of Atata, a small isolated island with a population of about 60 people. He was swept into the water when the waves hit land at around 7 p.m. local time.
He said he was painting at his house when his brother told him that there was a tsunami.
He then climbed a tree to save himself. However, just as he was about to descend, another wave swept over him.
Folau said he continued to float and then slowly managed to swim the 7.5 kilometers to Tongatapu.
Finally he managed to reach the beach after 27 hours, around 22.00 on Sunday (16/1/2022) local time.
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