The China Story
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Aid from China, which included cash assistance and emergency supplies, has arrived in tsunami-hit Tonga.
Tonga volcanic eruption may cause China's summer rain belts shift south.
Peru declared environmental emergency after announcing that 21 beaches polluted by spill linked to Tonga eruption.
The first flights carrying fresh water and other aid to Tonga finally arrived Thursday after the Pacific nation's main airport runway was cleared of ash.
SYDNEY -- Australia's Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) canceled all tsunami warnings for Australia on Sunday evening, which were previously issued due to a volcano eruption in Tonga.
The warnings, issued for several states along eastern coastal lines of Australia and some offshore islands after the underwater volcano Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha'apai erupted on Saturday, were downgraded to marine threat warning for the state of New South Wales, Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island.
WELLINGTON -- A New Zealand Air Force C-130 Hercules is ready to depart for Tonga on Monday to airdrop fresh water and other essential supplies, as the Pacific island country suffered from a serious tsunami following a major volcanic eruption.
The plane loaded with provisions to Tonga is requested by the Tongan authorities which said water supply had been severely affected in the fallout from the eruption, according to New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.
WELLINGTON -- A Royal New Zealand Air Force Orion aircraft left Base Auckland on Monday morning for tsunami-hit Tonga to assist in an initial impact assessment of the area and low-lying islands.
BEIJING -- China is closely watching the volcanic eruptions and ensuing disasters including tsunami and volcanic ash in Tonga, and stands ready to provide every possible support and assistance at Tonga's request, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Sunday.
WELLINGTON - A massive volcanic eruption in Tonga that triggered tsunami waves around the Pacific caused "significant damage" to the island nation's capital and smothered it in dust, but the full extent was unclear with communications still hampered Monday.
The tsunami threat around Pacific countries was abating on Sunday but the extent of damage remained unknown in Tonga, where a huge underwater volcano erupted the previous day and triggered tsunamis that flooded Pacific coastlines from Japan to the United States, prompting hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate.
TOKYO - Tsunami reached Japan late Saturday through early Sunday, and waves as high as three meters were possible, the Japan Meteorological Agency said, hours after a massive volcanic eruption near Tonga.
