Australian government officials announced Wednesday (26 January) that the country was continuing to deliver aid to Tonga. Foreign Minister Marise Payne and Defence Minister Peter Dutton said HMAS Adelaide arrived in Tonga Wednesday with additional humanitarian and medical supplies, engineering equipment and helicopters to support logistics and distribution as Australia continues its support in partnership with the Tongan government following the volcano and tsunami.
The ministers said Australia is widening its support, including through the restoration of power and communications, the storage and effective delivery of relief supplies, and further recovery efforts on the outer islands most affected. To date, Australia has delivered to Tonga more than 40 tonnes of emergency relief supplies, including shelter materials, water and sanitation supplies, equipment to restore communications and personal protective equipment for people clearing ash.
The Australian government will provide an additional $2 million in humanitarian funding to assist Tonga as it moves to the next phase of its recovery from the 15 January eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga-Ha’apai volcano and subsequent tsunami, bringing Australia’s humanitarian commitment to date to $3 million.
“We stand ready to provide further assistance to meet Tonga’s needs,” the ministers said in a joint statement. “We appreciate the decision of the government of Tonga to enable HMAS Adelaide to dock and offload the humanitarian and medical supplies, and the high priority it has placed on COVID safety throughout the recovery process.”
The ministers added that Australia continues to take precautions and deliver its aid in accordance with the COVID-safe practices. The ship is undertaking an entirely contactless delivery of humanitarian assistance and disaster relief supplies. They also said the Australian government continues to work closely with Tongan partners to mobilise resources to best support the government and the local community. They also said they were coordinating assistance with France and New Zealand under the FRANZ Pacific humanitarian response partnership, as well as Fiji, Japan, the United States, United Kingdom and non-government organisations.
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