Tsunami warnings across Pacific after volcanic eruption

DPA Wellington Tsunami alerts were issued across large parts of the South Pacific after an underwater volcano near Tonga erupted on Saturday and sent large...

DPAWellingtonTsunami alerts were issued across large parts of the South Pacific after an underwater volcano near Tonga erupted on Saturday and sent large waves crashing ashore the island kingdom.The giant eruption of the Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha’apai volcano triggered a tsunami in Tonga.Local media on the island chain reported a downpour of ash, the flooding of properties and disruptions to phone and power connections, but the extent of the devastation was unclear by late evening.The Bureau of Meteorology Australia said a 1.2 metre tsunami wave had been observed at Nuku’alofa, Tonga’s capital.Tonga’s King Tupou VI had been evacuated from the Royal Palace in the capital as many Tongans tried to get to higher ground. The New Zealand Defence Force said it was monitoring the situation in Tonga and stood ready to assist if requested by the government but that so far no request had been made, according to Radio New Zealand.Authorities across the Pacific, including in Samoa, Fiji and New Zealand, issued tsunami alerts, warning people to stay away from coastal areas due to the possibility of strong and unusual currents and unpredictable surges.“People in or near the sea should move out of the water, off beachesand shore areas and away from harbours, rivers and estuaries,” the New Zealand National Emergency Management Agency warned. Hauraki Gulf Weather recorded a 71 centimetre wave at Great Barrier Island, near Auckland following the eruption.The volcano is located about 2,000 kilometres north-east of New Zealand.New Zealand’s MetService said its instruments detected a pressure surge from the eruption. New Zealanders took to social media to report they could hear the eruption.The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said on Saturday that impacts could be felt in parts of the country’s west coast and in Alaska. A tsunami advisory was also issued for Hawaii.So far, however, no damage has been reported, it said. The volcano also erupted on Friday, when small tsunami waves of up to 30 centimetres were recorded, the Tonga Meteorological Office said.The volcano was erupting intermittently in late December, but Friday’s eruption was about seven times more powerful than the last eruption, Tonga Geological Services said.