CANBERRA, Australia — Four Japanese aircraft left Australia on Monday to deliver more vital aid to Tonga as the Pacific nation deals with the aftermath of a volcanic eruption and tsunami, according to AP.
The two Japanese Lockheed C-130 Hercules and two Kawasaki C-2 left the Royal Australian Air Force Base at Amberley in Queensland state to make the 3,300-kilometre (2,050-mile) journey east to the islands that were devastated by the January 15 twin disasters, the Australian Defense Department said in a statement.
“Australia proudly joins Japan and other Pacific Island countries working alongside the people of Tonga,” the statement said.
Aid flights from Australia, Japan and New Zealand also carried food, water, medical supplies and telecommunications equipment to Tonga over the weekend.
Because of the Covid-19 risk to a nation that has not had a local outbreak, aid flights are landing, offloading supplies, then leaving without contact with locals on the ground. The goods are left for 72 hours to reduce the infection risk before they are unpacked.
The main airport runway has been cleared of ash spewed when the nearby Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha’apai volcano erupted. The explosion set off a Pacific-wide tsunami that smashed boats in New Zealand and caused an oil spill in Peru.
