Aid flight lands in Tonga; phones partially restored as airport reopens
An aid flight from New Zealand carrying humanitarian supplies arrived in Tonga on Thursday, five days after the South Pacific island nation was hit by a volcanic eruption and tsunami that devastated communities and spoiled most of its drinking water.
A Royal New Zealand Air Force C-130 Hercules had landed in Tonga’s Fua’amotu International Airport, a defence spokesperson said, after a blanket of volcanic ash was finally cleared off the runway.
An Australian Globemaster military transport aircraft is also due to arrive. “The aircraft is carrying humanitarian aid and disaster relief supplies, including water containers, kits for temporary shelters, generators, hygiene and family kits, and communications equipment,” New Zealand’s foreign minister, Nanaia Mahuta, said in a statement.
