Global EditionASIA 中文雙語(yǔ)Fran?ais
World
Home / World / Huge Tonga volcanic eruption

Tonga volcano relief efforts face challenges: UN

Xinhua | Updated: 2022-01-19 09:08
Share
Share - WeChat
A handout photo taken on Jan 17, 2022 and made available by 2022 Planet Labs PBC shows volcanic ash covering Uiha island on Tonga. [Photo/Agencies]

UNITED NATIONS - Relief efforts following the Tonga volcano eruption face the challenge of severed communications, falling ash closing the major airport and strict anti-COVID measures, UN officials said on Tuesday.

They said the casualty toll remained at three dead and an unknown number of people injured.

"Needs assessments by the Tongan authorities are ongoing and should provide a better estimate of what is required of the international community," said Stephane Dujarric, the chief spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. "We are on standby with teams and emergency supplies, and stocks in Tonga are being readied for distribution once humanitarian needs are identified."

"Our staff there are working to assist coordination and response efforts in-country," he told a regular press briefing. There are 23 UN workers in Tonga -- 22 local hires and one international staffer.

In a video conference, Jonathan Veitch, the UN acting resident and humanitarian coordinator for Fiji, the Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu, spelled out challenges following Saturday's eruption.

Communications within the 36 inhabited of the nation's 169 islands were limited to satellite phones, as was the capital Nuku'alofa and between Tonga and the outside world.

The major submarine communications cable was severed, cutting voice, video and internet services. Still, Veitch said, "I'm able to send basic messages by SMS (Small Message Service --text) to our colleagues through satellite systems, and we hope that soon phones will be back up and running."

While the natural choice for humanitarians is to fly in relief, Veitch said the Nuku'alofa airport remained closed because workers were unable to finish clearing ashfall. He said ships sailing from Australia and New Zealand would take six to eight days to arrive in a Tonga port.

He also said there is a question of just how the authorities would handle people coming to Tonga when it has extremely strict protocols against COVID-19. No cases have been reported in the nation. Authorities are keen to keep the country COVID-free, especially in light of past Pacific island populations wiped out by rampant disease.

While there are no casualties among the 23 UN workers, there are an unknown number of injuries on outlying islands, Veitch said.

He said damage reports from those islands are coming in slowly. The coordinator said it is possible that damage on the outlying islands may not be as severe since they are further from the volcano. The eruption occurred only 65 km from the main island of Tongatapu, home of the capital.

"We are concerned about the water situation," Veitch said. "I haven't heard that people have run out of water which would be obviously an emergency situation. Of course we have heard that shops are running out of food and also there has been quite a lot of ... mass purchasing as always happens in these circumstances, including of water and of food supplies too."

Technicians are examining a desalination plant on the main island to see if it is ready to go back online. The expected ships carry water, food, emergency supplies and even desalination plants.

The sooner, the better to get the supplies, the coordinator said. "It is urgent."

Most Viewed in 24 Hours
Top
BACK TO THE TOP
English
Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

Registration Number: 130349
FOLLOW US
主站蜘蛛池模板: 国产一级特黄高清免费下载| 女偶像私下的y荡生活| 亚洲砖码砖专无区2023| 翁熄止痒婉艳隔壁老李头| 国产精品国产三级国产专播| 一本大道香蕉高清视频app| 日韩在线视频免费看| 国产精品情侣呻吟对白视频| 中文字幕一区二区三区有限公司| 欧美jizzhd精品欧美| 国产免费久久精品99re丫y| 91精品国产免费入口| 性xxxxx欧美极品少妇| 亚洲欧美日韩精品中文乱码| 老司机精品视频在线| 国产欧美日韩灭亚洲精品| 99久热只有精品视频免费看| 成年午夜无码av片在线观看| 久久综合综合久久综合| 精品亚洲456在线播放| 国产午夜精品无码| 一个人看的视频www在线| 都市激情校园春色亚洲| 野狼第一精品社区| 国产麻豆交换夫妇| 一级做性色a爰片久久毛片| 精品一区二区三区色花堂| 国产国产午夜精华免费| 一级片免费试看| 日韩三级免费电影| 亚洲伊人精品综合在合线| 草草影院第一页| 在线观看国产三级| 中文乱码字字幕在线第5页| 日韩不卡手机视频在线观看| 亚洲国产精品一区二区久久| 萌白酱福利视频| 在线观看欧美国产| 一级毛片中文字幕| 无码夫の前で人妻を侵犯| 久久精品视频2|