\n <\/cite>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\nCronin explains how such powerful shockwaves are created after the explosion:<\/p>\n
\"So the explosion is so rapid, we think it's going to push the water out of the way, but it also pushes the air out of the way, and the explosion is not just one thing, it's like exploding, exploding, exploding, exploding. And then that, couples with the air and couples of the water, we have the tsunami and then we have those air pressure waves.<\/p>\n
\"The air pressure wave actually went around the Earth and came back again and so and I was looking at a station in Miami where they recorded the first pressure wave, they recorded the pressure wave coming from the other side of the Earth, and then they recorded it again. So that's remarkable,\" he says.<\/p>\n
Communications with the island nation are limited because the single underwater fibre-optic cable that connects Tonga to the rest of the world appears to have been severed during the eruption. The company that owns the cable said the repairs could take weeks.<\/p>\n
A second undersea cable that connects the islands within Tonga also appeared to have been severed.<\/p>\n
The UN World Food Program is exploring how to bring in relief supplies and more staff - and has received a request to restore communication lines in Tonga, which is home to about 105,000 people.<\/p>\n","hashtag":null,"createdAt":1642587482,"updatedAt":1723539856,"publishedAt":1642592430,"firstPublishedAt":1642592433,"lastPublishedAt":1642756661,"expiresAt":0,"images":[{"url":"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/06\/39\/57\/68\/{{w}}x{{h}}_cmsv2_64f2b581-5e79-5537-98ad-ba09a46aa088-6395768.jpg","altText":"This satellite image provided by Maxar Technologies shows an overview of Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha'apai volcano in Tonga .","caption":"This satellite image provided by Maxar Technologies shows an overview of Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha'apai volcano in Tonga .","captionUrl":null,"captionCredit":"AP Photo","sourceUrl":null,"sourceCredit":null,"callToActionUrl":null,"callToActionText":null,"width":1920,"height":1080},{"url":"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/06\/39\/57\/68\/{{w}}x{{h}}_cmsv2_a7258a48-e1fb-52ad-bb69-0df87cc3151c-6395768.jpg","altText":"A grab obtained via NASA shows the eruption of the Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Haa'pai volcano in Tonga that provoked a tsunami.","caption":"A grab obtained via NASA shows the eruption of the Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Haa'pai volcano in Tonga that provoked a tsunami.","captionUrl":null,"captionCredit":"AFP PHOTO \/NASA\/NOAA","sourceUrl":null,"sourceCredit":null,"callToActionUrl":null,"callToActionText":null,"width":1920,"height":1080},{"url":"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/06\/39\/57\/68\/{{w}}x{{h}}_cmsv2_90d7fda0-b4f5-5081-b600-cb75a33629dd-6395768.jpg","altText":"In this photo provided by the New Zealand Defense Force, volcanic ash covers roof tops and vegetation in an area of Tonga.","caption":"In this photo 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Tonga Statement","channels":[{"id":1},{"id":2},{"id":4},{"id":5},{"id":12},{"id":14}],"status":2,"title":"Volcanic eruption and tsunami an 'unprecedented disaster', Tonga says","titleSeo":null,"titleListing1":"Volcanic eruption and tsunami an 'unprecedented disaster', Tonga says","titleListing2":"The government of Tonga called the underwater volcanic eruption on Saturday an \"unprecedented disaster\", resulting in the deaths of at least three people.","leadin":"The government of Tonga called the underwater volcanic eruption on Saturday an \"unprecedented disaster\", resulting in the deaths of at least three people.","summary":"The government of Tonga called the underwater volcanic eruption on Saturday an \"unprecedented disaster\", resulting in the deaths of at least three people.","keySentence":"","url":"volcanic-eruption-and-tsunami-an-unprecedented-disaster-tonga-says","canonical":"https:\/\/www.euronews.com\/2022\/01\/18\/volcanic-eruption-and-tsunami-an-unprecedented-disaster-tonga-says","masterCms":"v2","plainText":"The government of Tonga said the undersea volcanic eruption over the weekend was an \"unprecedented disaster\", resulting in the deaths of at least three people. \n\nThe eruption generated tsunami waves up to 15 metres that hit the west coast of several islands in the Pacific island archipelago, the government said in its first statement since the eruption on 15 January. \n\nInternational and domestic communications were down as well as internet due to damage from the eruption. \n\nThe volcanic eruption was heard as far away as Alaska, more than 9,000 km away. \n\nIt produced a huge cloud of smoke 30 kilometres high, which dispersed ashes, gas and acid rain across the Pacific region, which was immediately followed by the onset of a tsunami. \n\nSatellite images showed the extent of the damage, with Copernicus, the European Union's Earth Observation Programme, stating that an estimated 50% of residents near the Tonga capital Nuku'alofa were impacted. \n\n\nThe United Nations said the capital was covered in a two-centimetre layer of volcanic ash and dust. \n\nIn aerial images taken by a New Zealand surveillance flight, the coast of an island is lined with trees turned from green to grey due to volcanic ash. \n\nAsh also blanketed fields on the island, images from an Australian Army patrol aircraft showed. \n\nThe World Health Organization said had an officer on the ground in Tonga\u00a0helping to \"coordinate the response by channelling information between UN agencies, humanitarian partners and the Tongan government.\" \n\nBut some have said it could have been much worse. \n\n\n\u201cWe did hold grave fears, given the magnitude of what we saw in that unprecedented blast,\u201d Katie Greenwood, the head of delegation in the Pacific for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, told the AP. \n\n\u201cFortunately, in those major population centres we are not seeing the catastrophic effect we thought might happen, and that\u2019s very good news.\u201d \n\n","htmlText":"
The government of Tonga said the undersea volcanic eruption over the weekend was an \"unprecedented disaster\", resulting in the deaths of at least three people. <\/p>\n
The eruption generated tsunami waves up to 15 metres that hit the west coast of several islands in the Pacific island archipelago, the government said in its first statement since the eruption on 15 January. <\/p>\n
International and domestic communications were down as well as internet due to damage from the eruption. <\/p>\n
The volcanic eruption was heard as far away as Alaska, more than 9,000 km away. <\/p>\n
It produced a huge cloud of smoke 30 kilometres high, which dispersed ashes, gas and acid rain across the Pacific region, which was immediately followed by the onset of a tsunami. <\/p>\n
Satellite images showed the extent of the damage, with Copernicus, the European Union's Earth Observation Programme, stating that an estimated 50% of residents near the Tonga capital Nuku'alofa were impacted. <\/p>\n
The United Nations said the capital was covered in a two-centimetre layer of volcanic ash and dust.<\/p>\n