Aerial photos taken by New Zealand Defense Force reconnaissance flights show destruction on several of Tonga's outer islands, but officials warn that until communications are restored to all parts of the kingdom, it won't be entirely clear how much damage was caused by Saturday's undersea volcano eruption and subsequent tsunami.
Tonga is made up of more than 170 islands, and has a population of about 104,000. When the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano erupted early Saturday morning, it sent ash and steam into the air. Because there is still ashfall, all airports, even those that didn't sustain damage by the tsunami, are closed. This is hindering aid efforts, as planes carrying supplies from New Zealand and Australia aren't able to land. Officials are hopeful that Tonga's main airport, Fua'amotu International Airport, will be able to open on Wednesday.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Officials are warning that the death toll, which is now at two, will likely rise. "People panic, people run and get injuries," Tu'ihalangingie said. "Possibly there will be more deaths and we just pray that is not the case." One of the people who died was a British national named Angela Glover, an employee at an animal rescue facility; she died while attempting to save dogs from the tsunami.
-
Nepal chooses toddler as its new ‘living goddess’Under the Radar Girls between two and four are typically chosen to live inside the temple as the Kumari – until puberty strikes
-
October 5 editorial cartoonsCartoons Sunday's political cartoons include half-truth hucksters, Capitol lockdown, and more
-
Jaguar Land Rover’s cyber bailoutTalking Point Should the government do more to protect business from the ‘cyber shockwave’?
-
US tipped to help Kyiv strike Russian energy sitesSpeed Read Trump has approved providing Ukraine with intelligence for missile strikes on Russian energy infrastructure
-
Netanyahu agrees to Trump’s new Gaza peace planSpeed Read At President Trump's meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, they agreed upon a plan to end Israel’s war in Gaza
-
Russia is ‘helping China’ prepare for an invasion of TaiwanIn the Spotlight Russia is reportedly allowing China access to military training
-
Moldova gives decisive win to pro-EU partySpeed Read The country is now on track to join the European Union within five years
-
Interpol arrests hundreds in Africa-wide sextortion crackdownIN THE SPOTLIGHT A series of stings disrupts major cybercrime operations as law enforcement estimates millions in losses from schemes designed to prey on lonely users
-
UK, 3 Western allies recognize Palestinian stateSpeed Read Britain, Canada, Australia and Portugal formally recognized the state of Palestine
-
Russia slams Kyiv, hits government buildingSpeed Read This was Moscow's largest aerial assault since launching its full-scale invasion in 2022
-
China's Xi hosts Modi, Putin, Kim in challenge to USSpeed Read Chinese President Xi Jinping hosted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and other Asian leaders at an SCO summit
