Australian navy ship HMAS Adelaide has docked in Tonga to deliver humanitarian supplies despite nearly two dozen personnel onboard testing positive to COVID-19.HMAS Adelaide has delivered humanitarian supplies to COVID-free Tonga after a volcanic eruption and tsunami last week
Australia joined several other countries in sending crucial supplies to Tonga after a volcanic eruption and tsunami earlier this month, but its delivery became uncertain on Tuesday when 23 people on board the navy ship tested positive for the virus. In a statement, Foreign Minister Marise Payne said the delivery was entirely contactless to avoid transmission.
Australia has supplied more than 40 tonnes of emergency relief to Tonga since the January 15 disaster and will provide an extra $2 million in funding to help the island nation recover. "This disaster has shaken the people of Tonga like nothing we have seen in our lifetime," Sione Taumoefolau, secretary-general of Tonga Red Cross, said in a statement.Tonga has been reeling from the impact of an undersea volcanic eruption on Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai, around 65 kilometres north of Tonga's capital Nuku'alofa, which triggered a tsunami with up to 15-metre-high waves.
Tonga Cable chairman Samieula Fonua said preliminary estimates indicated the break in the undersea cable was located about 37 kilometres off the main island of Tongatapu.
These ships are massive. Hopefully the crew took steps to decontaminate the cargo before it went ashore. Done well boys and girls. I hope it helps Tonga. Stay safe RAN you do us proud.
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