Communication Broken, No Report Of Tsunami Impact In Tonga

JAKARTA - Most areas of Tonga hit by the tsunami were still unreachable on Sunday because telephone and internet lines were cut off, so reports of damage and casualties were not yet available.

An underwater volcano in the Pacific island nation erupted on Saturday, triggering a tsunami warning with waves as high as 1.2 meters.

Evacuation orders have been issued off the coast of Tonga and a number of South Pacific islands, where video footage on social media shows waves hitting houses by the sea.

Internet and telephone services went out at around 6:40 p.m. local time on Saturday leaving the islands' 150.000 residents completely isolated from the outside world.

There have been no official reports of injuries or deaths in Tonga as communications are limited and there has been no contact with coastal areas outside the capital Nuku'alofa, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern told the news conference on Sunday.

Tonga, an island nation of 105.000 people, is located 2.383 km northeast of New Zealand.

"Nuku'alofa is shrouded in volcanic ash but conditions are generally calm and stable," Ardern said.

"We have not received news from other coastal areas," she said.

Satellite images captured a volcanic eruption on Saturday when the volcanic eruption blew plumes of smoke into the air about 12 miles (19.3 km) above sea level. The sky above Tonga was darkened with ashes.

The concern is growing among the Tongan community in New Zealand, who are eager to communicate with their relatives back home.

Several churches hold collective prayers in Auckland and other cities.

"We pray that God helps our country in this sad moment. We wish everyone safety," Maikeli Atiola, secretary of the Tonga Wesleyan Church in Auckland, was quoted as saying by Radio New Zealand.

Ardern said an underwater communications cable had been hit, possibly due to a power outage.

Electricity is being restored in parts of Tonga and local cell phone networks are slowly starting to work, she said.

An official assessment of the damage is not yet available, Ardern said.

But Ardern said New Zealand's high commissioner in Nuku'alofa reported that the tsunami had damaged ships, shops, and other infrastructure.

Tonga's cabinet held a crisis management meeting on Sunday and is in contact with partners, a spokesman for Australia's international development minister Zed Seselja told Reuters.

He said Australia would send a P8 reconnaissance plane to Tonga on Monday.

Impact in the Pacific

Mount Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha'apai has erupted periodically in recent decades, but Saturday's eruption was so large that its voice was heard by residents in Fiji and New Zealand.

"My whole house shook," said Sanya Ruggiero, a consultant in Suva, Fiji's capital, about 750 km from Tonga.

"Doors, windows all rattling. Luckily it wasn't as bad as the other houses. Hundreds of people ran out of the house," said Ruggiero.

The roar and eruption of the volcano continued into the night, Ruggiero said. Hundreds of people fled to evacuation centers in Suva. Fiji Airways was forced to cancel all flights due to the ash cloud.

"This is the worst disaster Tonga has ever experienced and recovery will take years," said Ruggiero.

Experts say falling volcanic ash can contaminate drinking water and cause respiratory problems.

"Aid will be needed to restore drinking water supplies. Tongans will also have to be on the lookout for future eruptions and particularly tsunamis at short notice and should avoid low-lying areas," said Shane Cronin, professor of the University of Auckland School of Environment.

The eruption triggered tsunami warnings across the Pacific. The United States urges people in the Pacific coast to stay away from the coast. The Australian state of New South Wales has closed access to beaches.

Hundreds of thousands of Japanese residents have been advised to evacuate when waves as high as one meter hit the coast.