A Queensland dad faces a gut-wrenching wait after losing contact with his four-year-old son in Tonga as a volcano erupted in the Pacific – with Jacinda Ardern warning anxious families parts of the island had been devastated by a tsunami.
Mosese Sitapa was on FaceTime with his son Elone on Saturday when the tsunami smashed through their home in the South Pacific Ocean.
Despite desperate attempts to contact the little boy and his loved ones the devoted dad has been unable to get through and is still anxiously awaiting an update.
He is just one of the thousands of Tongans in Australia and New Zealand who are struggling to contact family members after a massive underwater volcano erupted.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern warned families desperate to speak to their loved ones they may face many more sleepless nights as contact with Tonga remains limited
Photos have been posted to social media of children sleeping in tents after being evacuated from their homes (pictured)
The 7.4 magnitude earthquake 65km from Tonga’s capital Nuku’alofa caused tsunami waves and extensive flooding up to 10,000km away from the epicentre.
Mr Sitapa said he saw the gigantic waves on social media and tried to warn the toddler over the phone, but his efforts came too late.
‘I just talked to him and he kept playing with his toys. It was so sad,’ he told 9News.
He hasn’t heard from his son or his mother since the earthquake struck, with Tonga remaining largely uncontactable on Sunday.
Lasting eight minutes, the eruption could be heard as ‘loud thunder sounds’ more than 800km away in Fiji, officials in the capital Suva said.
Mosese Sitapa (pictured) was on FaceTime with his son Elone on Saturday when a once in a lifetime tsunami smashed through their home in the South Pacific Ocean
Monster waves swept through the city forcing residents to race to higher ground as they were hit with ash and small stones falling from the sky.
The effect of the volcanic eruption has been felt in New Zealand, the US, Canada and South America with warnings triggered for Australia’s east coast, Fiji, New Vanuatu, American Samoa, Lord Howe Island, Macquarie Island and Norkfolk Island.
In New Zealand, dock was torn apart in a marina at Tutukaka on the North Island on Sunday after waves from the volcanic eruption swept in.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern warned families desperate to speak to their loved ones they may face many more sleepless nights.
‘Communication with Tonga remains very limited. And I know that is causing a huge amount of anxiety for the Tongan community here,’ Ms Ardern said.
While so far there has been no reports of injury or death, a full assessment of the situation has been impossible with zero communication available (pictured, the underwater eruption)
The prime minister reiterated the earthquake had caused ‘significant damage’ with the full extent not completely understood with communication lines still down.
Southern Cross Cable Network, the company that manages the connection, does not know yet ‘if the cable is cut or just suffering power loss,’ chief technical officer Dean Veverka said.
‘The tsunami has had a significant impact on the foreshore on the northern side of Nuku’alofa with boats and large boulders washed ashore,’ Ms Ardern said following talks with New Zealand embassy in Tonga.
‘Nuku’alofa is covered in a thick film of volcanic dust but otherwise conditions are calm and stable.’
Ms Ardern said Tonga was in need of fresh water as the volcanic ash – which was spurted 20m high during the quake – had contaminated water supplies.
The government has asked the public to wear masks and use bottled water for now.
The tsunami has had a significant impact on the foreshore on the northern side of Nuku’alofa with boats and large boulders washed ashore, the NZ prime minister said
People survey a damaged boat at Tutukaka in New Zealand on Sunday after waves from the volcano swept into the marina
The prime minister said images of the violent volcanic eruption near Tonga were ‘hugely concerning’, with defence force strategising ways to help.
New Zealand has so far only been able to send a military surveillance flight over Tonga on Sunday because the ash cloud was 19,000 metres high, but they hoped to send another flight on Monday, followed by supply planes and navy ships.
Pictures have been posted to social media of children sleeping in tents after being evacuated from their homes.
Dozens of homes in Tonga have suffered severe structural damage while others are completely flooded with internet and telephone links severed.
Casualty reports are yet to come through meaning Tongans living abroad and in nearby New Zealand are facing a painstaking wait for updates.
While so far there has been no reports of injury or death, a full assessment of the situation has been impossible with zero communication available.
Australia’s Minister for Health Greg Hunt on Sunday afternoon confirmed no Australians are known to have been injured in Tonga.
In New Zealand, dock was torn apart in a marina at Tutukaka on the North Island on Sunday after waves from the volcanic eruption swept in (pictured)
Mr Hunt said Foreign Minister Marise Payne and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade are working with Tongan authorities.
‘DFAT will continue to engage with the Tongan Government and has offered through the foreign minister all possible support that may be required,’ Mr Hunt said.
Australia’s foreign aid office has said it would immediately prepare to send critical humanitarian supplies and a surveillance plane from Canberra.
The United States has also vowed to support Tonga with Secretary of State Antony Blinken stating the country was ‘deeply concerned for the people of Tonga’.
Massive waves of up to 4.1 feet were recorded in Port San Luis on Saturday, and tsunami-effect waves were recorded along the coast in California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and Alaska.
Despite warnings residents flocked to beaches to view the surging tsunami waves, and some surfers threw caution to the wind to catch them.
An aerial shot of capsized boats believed to be affected by the tsunami in Muroto in Japan
In Australia, the eruption led to a major surf event in Sydney being cancelled on Sunday with most beaches forced to close across New South Wales.
At about 12pm on Sunday, the Bureau of Meteorology reported tsunami warnings for Tasmania, Victoria and Queensland had been cancelled.
At about 10pm the same warning for New South Wales was revoked by the Bureau.
In Japan, authorities warned of waves as high as 3m. A 1.2m tsunami was recorded in the Kominato district of Amami-Oshima Island in Kagoshima Prefecture at 11.55pm on Saturday (1.55am AEDT).
The tsunami also reached South America and caused serious flooding in Peru on the west coast of the continent. The Chilean coast of Los Rios, almost 10,000km from Tonga, was also been affected.
Chilean beaches were left empty after a mass evacuation along its extensive coastline, which stretches more than half the length of the continent’s west coast.
Chile’s National Emergency Management Authority issued a tsunami warning in three regions of the country following the Honga Hapai volcano eruption.
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