One year since the underwater volcanic eruption that struck Tonga on January 15 2022 Caritas Tonga, together with its partners, have developed a long-term recovery program to support local communities as they rebuild from the disaster.
According to Tonga Government reports, an estimated 85,000 people (84 per cent of the Tongan population) were affected by the natural disasters that resulted from the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai eruption. Flooding, toxic ashfall and a tsunami left several coastal communities without food, water and shelter. For nearly one month, telecommunications on the island nation were completed cut off.
Since January 2022, Caritas Tonga has worked in partnership with Caritas Australia and Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand, Tongan Government bodies – including the National Emergency Management Office (NEMO) and the Tongan National Youth Council – and the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) to help provide clean drinking water, emergency supplies, shelter for families, psychosocial support and COVID-19 responses, as well as rebuild infrastructure and restore telecommunications.
Immediately after the disaster, Caritas Tonga provided a counselling team for traumatised families and prepositioned supplies and distributed emergency relief items including hygiene kits, buckets and jerry cans, kitchen supplies, blankets and water purification kits to affected communities. In addition, face masks, soaps and water buckets with taps were distributed to villages with positive COVID-19 cases.
Last year, a water purification station was installed in Kanokupolu and ‘Ahau, and water tanks were cleaned in Ma’ufanga, Siesia, Patangata, Folaha, Holonga, Sopu, Fahefa and Kolomotu’a village before being filled by clean water.
On behalf of Caritas Tonga, Project Officer Malialosa Tapueluelu shared their deep felt gratitude towards those who have contributed to the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcanic eruption recovery response. “We would like to thank you again for your care and generosity towards our people,” she said in an interview with Caritas Australia.
“With our long-term recovery response, we are focussing on psychosocial empowerment of the communities in the most affected areas. We are also looking at retrofitting and renovating some of our halls and churches to function as admission and immigration centres for future disasters.”
“Since May 2022 we have also been collecting food crop donations to distribute to areas where plantations were severely impacted. Since that time there has been little rain so it has been hard for communities to recover, and we have been distributing fresh food crops to these severely impacted small island communities instead of tinned food, and we will continue this until we see that their plantations have started to recover.”
In 2023, the main objectives of the Caritas Tonga volcano disaster recovery response are:
1. To increase water and food security
2. To increase access to nutritional varieties in homes and villages
3. To enhance psychological wellbeing and coping mechanisms
4. To increase preparedness for future
The Caritas Confederation and Caritas Internationalis are grateful for the kind, compassionate and generous support of staff, volunteers and donors who have supported Tonga during this time of crisis. With you support, Caritas can continue to provide lifesaving humanitarian aid to those who are in most need:
Emergency appeal for Tonga hit by volcanic eruption and tsunami