Almost a week after the eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Hàapai volcano and the subsequent tsunami that devastated the Tonga Islands, aid continues to arrive from all over the world.
Yesterday the first planes landed at the main airport of the archipelago, on the island of Tongatapui, today it is the turn of the ships that had left a few days ago. The first to dock will be the New Zealand Hmnzs Aotearoa which carries 250,000 liters of water, according to the UN the main priority at the moment.
Tonga, the island where you go to disappear and end up finding yourself
by Melania Mazzucco
The Australian ship Hmas Adelaide has also set sail with helicopters on board that will be used to bring supplies to the smaller and more remote islands of the archipelago. Great Britain has also announced the departure of its Hms Spey and in the meantime has sent aid with the ship which sailed from Australia.
In addition to the governments of New Zealand and Australia, Japan, Great Britain, China and other countries also sent fresh water and other necessary supplies on military ships and transport aircraft.
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The UK also announced it would also redirect its Hms Spey to send aid. “The UK will work closely with Australia and New Zealand to assist the recovery effort in Tonga and is ready to support our longtime Commonwealth partner,” said British Defense Minister Ben Wallace.
However, a plane loaded with aid that departed from Australia and headed for Tonga was forced to turn back after a case of Covid was discovered on board, reports the Guardian. The supplies were loaded onto another plane that took off today.
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The archipelago in the Pacific remains an area without coronavirus and has a very strict policy to avoid any type of risk.
Before leaving for the archipelago devastated by the tsunami following the eruption of the volcano, all crew members had carried out rapid tests and tested negative. Then at a second check with the molecular one a person tested positive.