VIDEO: The terrifying beauty of the Hung Tonga eruption. The smoke rose to a height of 20 kilometers – TVNOVINY.sk

The massive eruption of the Hunga-Hunag Ha´apai submarine volcano caused extensive damage to the Tonga archipelago. The blast in the archipelago did not claim human casualties, but two people apparently died on a beach in Peru that was flooded by a tsunami.

The inhabitants of the archipelago described Tonga after the eruption as a lunar landscape because it was covered with a thick layer of gray volcanic ash. In addition, it has contaminated the water, so there is still a shortage of drinking water in the island nation, said New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. Only bottled water can be drunk and residents have to wear drapes because of the ashes. A 1.2-meter tsunami destroyed beach shops and washed away ships.

The New Zealand Ministry of Defense, in communication with the New Zealand Embassy in Nuku’alof, informed that the island nation had already succeeded in restoring energy supplies in many parts of the capital.

The islands are currently almost unconnected to the outside world, as the earthquake and tsunami have apparently damaged an important submarine communications cable. So far, only satellite communication is possible.

Dramatic footage from Reuters shows black volcanic ash clouds erupting amid high pillars of smoke during Friday’s eruption.

Dean Veverka, director of Southern Cross Cable Networks, said it could take up to two weeks to repair the cable and re-establish the Internet connection in Tonga. The nearest vessel with facilities for its deployment is located in Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea, which lies more than 4,000 kilometers from Tonga.

The state of Tonga found itself in a similar situation for two weeks in 2019, when a submarine cable was cut by a ship’s anchor. At that time, a small, locally operated satellite service was set up, which allowed at least minimal contact with the outside world.

You can see in the satellite images that the eruption significantly changed the shape of the volcano. The middle part completely collapsed into the sea. The eruption was so strong that they heard it up to 2400 km away in New Zealand and a pressure wave was also noticed in Slovakia, which is 17,000 kilometers away from the archipelago.

The US Geological Survey (USGS) said the eruption caused earthquakes, such as the 5.8-degree earthquake. According to geologists, tsunami waves caused by volcanoes are relatively rare.

Satellite image of the volcano before the eruption

Satellite image of the volcano after the eruption

Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apa submarine in a picture taken on Tuesday, January 11, 2022, a few days before the eruption. (2) .jpg Photo: Profimedia.sk

Unusually high waves have also caused damage to the Peruvian coast. Authorities have temporarily closed up to 20 ports. Peruvian police said on Twitter that two dead women were found on Naylamp beach, who apparently drowned as a result of the tsunami.