New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern confirmed on Sunday that the tsunami that hit parts of the capital of the Kingdom of Tonga in the South Pacific due to a volcanic eruption on Saturday caused great damage, while a warning was issued of a similar danger threatening the West Coast of America.
Ardern said that there were no reports of casualties from the tsunami, but she indicated that communications with Tonga - which has a population of 105,000 and is about two thousand kilometers northeast of New Zealand - is still limited, as the eruption of the volcano cut off the Internet and phone lines for the entire country. .
She added that her country is looking into how to provide assistance to its affected neighbour.
The New Zealand Prime Minister's comments came as the "Pacific Tsunami Warning Center" announced today, Sunday, the end of the risk of a tsunami, as a result of the massive volcanic eruption that occurred the day before yesterday, Friday, tens of kilometers from the city of Nuku Alofa, the capital of the island of Tonga.
For his part, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said that Washington is ready to provide support to its neighbors in the Pacific.
A tsunami hit the island of Tonga after a volcanic eruption.
#Tsunami #Tonga pic.twitter.com/d9dogjjI7W
— Aleksander Onishchuk (@Brave_spirit81) January 15, 2022
tsunami waves
The eruption of the "Hunga Tonga Hapai" volcano led to a tsunami that flooded properties and damaged infrastructure in Nuku'alofa.
Video footage on social media also showed strong waves hitting the shore of the city of Suva on the island of Fiji, 800 km from the Kingdom of Tonga.
The effects of the volcanic eruption in Tonga included the island of American Samoa, where the tsunami waves were anchored, but they were less high compared to the waves observed in the capital of Tonga and a boat 1.5 meters high.
Activists on social media have broadcast video clips showing the effects of the Tonga tsunami reaching countries as far away in South America as Chile, Peru and Ecuador.
In Australia, the authorities closed a number of beaches in anticipation of the formation of high tidal waves.
In Japan, pictures showed boats wrecked in a port in the city of Moroto in the Japanese prefecture of Kochi, which is located in the South Pacific Ocean.
Tongan eruption from boat.#Tonga #Tsunami pic.twitter.com/Ls64vq1YU4
— Lynn Schore (@LynnSchore) January 15, 2022
The coasts of America
Earlier, the US meteorological authorities warned of large tsunami waves threatening the west coast of the United States, following the eruption of an undersea volcano near the Pacific island of Tonga.
The warning also included Hawaii and Alaska, the Americas, and some beaches of the American West Coast seemed almost empty, in light of the fear of high tidal waves.
Images captured from space showed the moment when the volcano spewed masses of smoke and ash, and caused tsunami waves across the surrounding sea.
Residents in parts of New Zealand and Fiji heard the eruption of the volcano, which made the sky over the island of Tonga overcast with black clouds as a result of volcanic ash.
The volcano, which is located 65 kilometers north of the capital of Tonga, released - during its eruption - a cloud of ash, steam and gas in the air that extended for about 20 km.
The Geological Survey of Tonga stated that the volcano witnessed an intermittent eruption in late December, but indicated that the eruption that occurred the day before yesterday, Friday, was 7 times stronger compared to its last eruption.