By Rachel Elbaum
The first images of Tonga, with the main island covered in a thick layer of volcanic ash, begin to emerge on Tuesday after the Pacific island nation was hit over the weekend by an undersea volcanic eruption and tsunami.
Aerial and satellite photos revealed the extent of the damage from the eruption, raising fears of a major disaster.
Saturday's volcanic explosion could be heard as far away as Alaska, triggered tsunami alerts on the West Coast of the United States and sent waves across the ocean to Japan and Peru, where it caused an oil spill and drowned two people. .
The eruption also sent spectacular plumes of smoke, ash and gas rising over the South Pacific, with a mushroom cloud visible from space.
In this New Zealand Defense Force photo, volcanic ash covers roofs and vegetation in an area of Tonga.
CPL Vanessa Parker/AP
But with communications to the country largely cut off, the true extent of the damage, and the human cost, was not immediately clear.
The first details of the destruction began to emerge after reconnaissance flights by Australia and New Zealand, and in the first public statement from the local government.
Tonga officials feared the death toll could rise as international aid operations were further hampered by ash damage and precautionary measures from the coronavirus pandemic.
The first revealed photos show trees, buildings, green spaces and pathways on the normally lush islands now covered in a sea of dark ash;
and the water left behind by the giant waves that washed ashore after the eruption.
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The images were released by the United Nations satellite center, and after reconnaissance flights from New Zealand and Australia.
Tonga police told the New Zealand High Commission there were two confirmed deaths.
A British woman living in Tonga who ran an animal rescue center was swept up in the tsunami, becoming the first known victim on Monday.
“People panic, people run and get injured.
There will possibly be more deaths and we pray that this is not the case,” Curtis Tu'ihalangingie, deputy head of Tonga's mission in Australia, told the Reuters news agency.
Tongan officials had hoped to evacuate people from the more isolated and lower-lying Ha'apai group of islands and other outer islands where conditions were "very harsh" and in which there are "many homes destroyed by the tsunami." Australia's Pacific Minister Zed Seselja said, according to Reuters.
Of particular concern is the situation of residents of two small islands, Fonoi and Mango, where an active distress beacon had been detected, according to the UN relief agency.
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In this satellite image provided by Maxar Technologies, a view of the Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha'apai volcano in Tonga, Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2022, following a massive underwater volcanic eruption. Satellite image ©2022 Maxar Technologies / AP
Tongan authorities have asked for immediate assistance, including water and food, according to the UN.
Although the island nation's main international airport was not damaged by the eruption and tsunami, heavy ash fall impeded international relief efforts and operations.
Australia and New Zealand sent the first reconnaissance flights to survey the damage on Monday after a massive ash cloud prevented earlier flights.
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The two countries have sent boatloads of water and relief supplies to the 171-island archipelago, which has a population of nearly 106,000.
In this photo provided by the New Zealand Defense Force, volcanic ash covers vegetation in an area of Tonga following the January 16-17 eruption and tsunami. CPL Vanessa Parker / AP
Ships from New Zealand won't arrive
for another three days
, according to the country's defense minister.
The country pledged an initial batch of $680,000 in aid for recovery work and also sent inspection and diving teams to assess the damage at the ports.
The US international aid agency also said it is working with partners to provide relief supplies and shelter for residents.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said Tuesday that China is preparing to send drinking water, food, personal protective equipment and other supplies to Tonga as soon as flights resume.
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Experts said the volcano, which last erupted in 2014, had been emitting for about a month before rising magma, heated to around 1,832 degrees Fahrenheit, met 68-degree seawater, causing an instant and massive explosion.
In addition, the seafront in the capital city of Nuku'alofa was severely damaged by rocks and debris pushed inland by the tsunami, according to a report released by the UN humanitarian affairs agency.
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Communications are also limited after the eruption severed the only fiber optic undersea cable connecting Tonga with the rest of the world.
Two cuts in the cable could not be repaired until volcanic activity ceased, allowing repair crews access, said Samiuela Fonua, president of Tonga Cable, according to Reuters.
