A 57-year-old man from Tonga survived after swimming for about 27 hours after being swept away in the sea during the catastrophic tsunami caused on Saturday after the eruption of an underwater volcano.
The eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano on Saturday claimed the lives of at least three people and caused tsunami waves across the archipelago, destroying villages, resorts and many buildings, while also destroying the communication networks of this small country of only 105,000 inhabitants. .
Lisala Folaou, who lived on the small isolated island of Atata with a population of 60, was swept into the sea when the waves hit the mainland at around 7pm on Saturday, he said in a radio interview with the Tonga Broadcom Broadcasting news agency.
According to Folaou, he was painting his house when his brother warned him about the tsunami and soon the waves had already entered his living room.
He climbed a tree to escape but when another big wave came down he dragged him away.
The 57-year-old says he has a disability and can not walk well.
“I was just floating, I was hit by the big waves that kept coming,” he told the radio station.
And while still floating, he slowly managed to swim 7.5 kilometers to the central island of Tongatapu, reaching the coast 27 hours later, at 10 a.m. Sunday.
Reuters could not be reached for comment.
His story went viral between groups from Tonga on Facebook and other social media.
Atata, located about eight kilometers northwest of Tonga’s capital, Nuku’alofa, or 30 minutes by boat, has been almost completely destroyed by the tsunami that hit the islands.
Tongan Navy vessels continue to search the smaller islands and evacuate residents to the larger ones.
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