汤加火山爆发和海啸造成“毁灭性”影响，灾情仍不明朗

In Volcano’s Aftermath, an Agonizing Wait for Tonga News

NATASHA FROST

2022年1月18日

Two days after a colossal volcanic eruption spawned a tsunami that struck the island nation of Tonga, severed communication lines left Tongans around the world waiting anxiously for news of their loved ones, while aid agencies and the country’s Pacific neighbors struggled to assess the scale of the damage.

一场巨大的火山爆发引发的海啸袭击了岛国汤加，两天后，通讯线路依然中断，世界各地的汤加人都在焦急地等待他们所爱之人的消息，救援机构和汤加的太平洋邻国也在努力评估损失。

On Saturday night, an undersea volcano about 40 miles north of Tonga’s main island belched ash, gas and steam more than 12 miles into the air, creating a cloud of sulfur dioxide over the region, sending particles drifting across the island and disabling a crucial submarine internet cable. It was believed to be the largest volcanic eruption in three decades, with the shock wave traveling thousands of miles.

周六晚上，位于汤加主岛以北约64公里的一座海底火山向空中喷出超过19公里的火山灰、气体和蒸汽，在该地区上空形成一片二氧化硫云，颗粒物在岛上飘浮，并使一条重要的海底互联网电缆瘫痪。这被认为是30年来最大的一次火山爆发，其冲击波传播了数千公里。

Hours later, Tonga, a country of around 100,000 people, was pummeled by a tsunami. Waves of up to four feet hit Nuku’alofa, the Tongan capital. Footage shared in the final moments before the internet connection was cut showed people running inland, searching desperately for higher ground in a very flat country.

数小时后，人口约10万的汤加遭到海啸袭击。高达1.2米的海浪袭击了汤加首都努库阿洛法。在互联网连接被切断前的最后时刻分享的视频显示，人们跑向内陆，在这个非常平坦的国家拼命寻找高地。

The volcano, Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai, erupted again on Monday but did not trigger a tsunami warning. Tonga sits along the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” a series of fault lines where earthquakes and volcanic activity are frequent.

这座名为洪阿汤加·洪阿哈阿帕伊的火山周一再次喷发，但没有触发海啸预警。汤加位于太平洋“火山带”，也就是一系列地震和火山活动频繁的断层带。

Fatafehi Fakafanua, the speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Tonga, was able to send out a message on social media on Monday, describing the tsunami’s impact as “devastating” and noting that the fall of volcanic ash had affected many areas of the country.

汤加立法会议长法塔菲希·法卡法努阿周一在社交媒体上发布信息，称海啸的影响是“毁灭性的”，并指出火山灰的降落影响了该国的许多地区。

“The full extent of the harm to lives and property is currently unknown,” he said. “What we do know is that Tonga needs immediate assistance to provide its citizens with fresh drinking water and food.”

“目前还不清楚生命和财产所遭受的全面损害，”他说。“我们所知道的是，汤加需要紧急援助，为居民提供新鲜的饮用水和食物。”

The loss of most communications, as well as a lingering ash cloud that had reached some 63,000 feet high, have made it difficult for the outside world to get a picture of the situation in Tonga.

由于大部分通讯被中断，高达1.9万余米的火山灰云挥之不去，使得外界难以了解汤加的情况。

Both Australia and New Zealand sent surveillance flights to the country on Monday. The United Nations said its agencies were standing by to send emergency supplies to Tonga but were awaiting information about what was needed.

周一，澳大利亚和新西兰都向该国派出了侦察机。联合国表示，其下属机构已准备好向汤加运送紧急物资，但仍在等待有关所需物资的信息。

“We don’t have a clear picture,” Stéphane Dujarric, a U.N. spokesman, told reporters in New York. “I don’t think anyone has a clear picture. And that’s what everybody, I think, is, first of all, scrambling to get exactly: the clarity of information so we can dispatch the right kind of aid.”

“我们不了解情况，”联合国发言斯特凡·杜亚里克在纽约告诉记者。“我认为没有人清楚地了解。我认为，最首要的是，所有人都在争先恐后地获取准确、清晰的信息，这样我们才能派遣正确的援助。”

Mr. Dujarric said that the United Nations had 23 staff members in Tonga — all but one of them Tongans — and that “all were accounted for,” correcting an earlier statement that no U.N. workers were in the country. The organization’s offices for the region are in Fiji, which is about 500 miles to the northwest.

杜加里克说，联合国在汤加有23名工作人员，除一人外，其余都是汤加人，而且“所有人都已找到下落”，这纠正了早些时候关于联合国没有工作人员在汤加的声明。联合国在该地区的办事处位于西北方向约800公里外的斐济。

Based on information gathered by the Australian surveillance flight, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported significant infrastructure damage on Tongatapu, the main island, particularly to property in the western beaches region.

根据澳大利亚侦察机收集到的信息，联合国人道主义事务协调办公室报告称，主岛汤加塔普的基础设施遭到严重破坏，尤其是西部海滩地区的房屋。

There was “particular concern” about two small low-lying islands from which there had been no contact and on which just more than 100 people live. “An active distress beacon had been detected from Mango,” the report said, referring to one of the islands.

有两个低洼的小岛“特别令人关切”，这两个小岛与外界一直没有联系，岛上只有100多人居住。“从芒果岛侦测到一个活跃的求救信号，”报道称，芒果岛是其中一个岛屿。

The information vacuum left thousands of overseas Tongans to make do with piecemeal videos — of waves buffeting the shore, or of families sheltering under tables below a dark sky — that were shared through the island’s few satellite links.

这种信息真空导致数以千计的海外汤加人只能得到通过岛上为数不多的卫星连接分享的零散视频——海浪拍打着海岸，黑暗的天空下，一家人躲在桌子底下。

The organizations with access to these communications, including the New Zealand High Commission, have filled in some of the blanks, though many people were still waiting desperately for news.

新西兰高级委员会等能够接触到这些信息的组织填补了一些空白，然而许多人仍在急切地等待消息。

Siniva Valu Filise, who lives in Wales, where her husband played professional rugby, is worried about her parents, 73 and 66, whose home is on the western side of Tonga.

西尼瓦·瓦卢·菲里斯住在威尔士，丈夫是威尔士的职业橄榄球运动员。她很担心自己的父母，他们的年龄分别为73岁和66岁，住在汤加西部。

A friend with a connection to the Tongan military was able to briefly confirm in a message that her parents were safe, she said.But she is unsure about their access to clean drinking water and food after the eruption left the layer of ash across the country.

她说，一位与汤加军方有联系的朋友在短信中简短地确认了她父母的安全。但她不确定他们是否能获得干净的饮用水和食物，因为火山爆发在全国各地留下了一层火山灰。

“We feel so helpless,” she said. “Just watching from afar, we can’t even do anything.”

“我们感到很无助，”她说。“只能远远地看着，我们什么都做不了。”

She added: “It’s been two days now. It’s just so hard, trying to hold on to that glimmer of hope.”

她还说：“现在已经两天了。想要抓住一线希望，真是太难了。”

Two people have been reported missing, according to the United Nations, and at least one person died in the tsunami. Angela Glover, a British woman who had lived in Tonga for about five years, was swept away while trying to save her dogs, according to video footage. Her husband, James, survived by holding on to a tree.

据联合国报道，已有两人失踪，至少一人在海啸中丧生。视频显示，在汤加生活了大约五年的英国女子安吉拉·格洛弗在救她的狗时被海浪卷走。她的丈夫詹姆斯紧紧抓住一棵树活了下来。

Ms. Dowling, who had volunteered with Ms. Glover in Tonga, was also waiting for news from a different friend who runs a resort, with whom she normally speaks daily. “I pretty much ring her every hour or so, but nothing’s happening,” she said. “It’s just impossible at the moment.”

道林和格洛弗一起在汤加当过志愿者，她还在等待另一个朋友的消息，那个朋友经营一家度假村，两人通常每天都会通话。“我几乎每隔一小时就给她打电话，但什么也没有发生，”她说。“目前这个时候完全打不通。”

Tongans overseas have organized prayer circles and vigils to support one another as they await word.

海外汤加人组织了祈祷会和守夜活动，在等待消息时互相支持。

“I’ve just been talking to friends, organizing prayer vigils and stuff like that for family and for Tongans overseas who are trying to make connections with family back home,” said Mele Makelesi Facci, who lives in Melbourne, Australia, and has not heard from her relatives in Tonga, including a niece who had a baby a few weeks ago.

“我一直在和朋友们交谈，为家人和那些试图与国内家人联系的海外汤加人组织祈祷守夜活动，以及类似的活动，”住在澳大利亚墨尔本的米利·马克莱西·法奇说，她一直无法联系到汤加的亲人，包括她几周前刚刚生下孩子的侄女。

For Tongan seasonal workers living in Australia, such community and prayer were helping to bridge the gap, she added.

她补充说，对于在澳大利亚从事季节性工作的汤加人来说，这样的社区和祈祷有助于拉近距离。

“They feel helpless. They can’t do anything from here,” she said. “Just not being able to be connected, I think it’s the hardest part.”

“他们觉得无助。他们在这里什么也做不了，”她说。“他们和亲人就是联系不上，我认为这是最难过的事。”