Jimu news reporter Liu Qin
Video clip Peng Wanxin
Intern Xiong Xin
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Recently, a violent submarine volcanic eruption occurred in the South Pacific island country of Tonga and triggered a tsunami, which attracted the world's attention. The volcanic eruption in Tonga has made Fiji 800 kilometers away also become a hot spot, and some Fijian Chinese have issued videos saying that due to the impact of the Tonga tsunami, the local "volcanic ash covers the sky", "there is a sulfuric acid smell in the air" and "breathless". On January 19, Jimu News reporters contacted a number of Chinese who had lived in Fiji for many years, and they all said that the video content of the Chinese Fijian had caused excessive concerns about them among relatives and friends in China, and most of Fiji was not affected by the Tonga tsunami.
Fiji has been rainy for days
Mr. Yang, a Sichuan Chinese who is engaged in the construction industry in Suva, the capital of Fiji, told Jimu News that at about 4 p.m. local time on January 15, after a violent submarine volcanic eruption occurred in Tonga, more than 700 kilometers from Fiji, and caused a tsunami, he was on the construction site, because Suva had been raining for days, the sky was gray, and occasionally accompanied by thunder, he did not care when he heard some noises.
Suva, the capital of Fiji (Photo provided by interviewee)
Mr. Yang said he only learned of the tsunami in Tonga hours after the incident. On the evening of the 17th, the Fijian government also issued a warning of acid rain, saying that there is a risk of acid rain in Fiji, and the Ministry of environment also urged the public to build a household water tank and stay indoors when it rains.
Until the morning of the 18th local time, Mr. Yang, who woke up from sleep, picked up his mobile phone, and there were many unread messages to him, and there were many missed calls from relatives and friends in China. "They all asked me if I was safe, I was confused at the time, and then I asked other Chinese people to learn that there was information circulating on the Internet about Fiji volcanic ash covering the sky, the air and the smell of sulfuric acid." After browsing the major social platforms, Mr. Yang found that the source of disseminating this information came from a local Chinese in Fiji, who was also his WeChat friend. "Fiji and Beijing time difference of 4 hours, when I was about to sleep in China, I was already asleep, my family sent me messages, phone calls did not answer, but I think how anxious they are." Mr. Yang said that after seeing these messages that concerned him, he replied one by one. "The reply did not come, and I sent several messages in the WeChat circle of friends to report the news of safety."
Mr. Yang said that the Chinese Fijian filmed the video in his new home, Toka, 100 kilometers west of Suva, and he had also been to that place. Videos taken by Chinese Fijians show dark clouds in the sky, and Mr. Yang analyzed that Fiji is in the rainy season, and such weather often occurs. The other party said in the video: "Now it is particularly serious outside, I can't open my eyes, I can't breathe." Mr. Yang said that he specifically asked other Chinese in different locations in Fiji about their feelings, and said that they were basically unaffected by the Tonga tsunami. In addition, Mr. Yang also paid attention to the live broadcast of the Fijian Chinese, and the other party also took out a gas mask during the live broadcast. "This has undoubtedly increased the concern of relatives and friends in China about us, in fact, what he said does not exist at all." Since the afternoon of the 18th, Suva's rainy weather for many consecutive days has finally stopped, and the sky has begun to clear, "Now it is all blue sky and white clouds, completely unaffected by volcanic eruptions." Mr. Yang said.
The videographer has apologized
Also troubled is Yang Honglian, who has lived in Suva, the capital of Fiji, for 15 years, who is a senior researcher at the Pacific Island Countries Research Center of Liaocheng University, and in the days around the 16th, he was very busy, and because he did not reply to greetings from relatives and friends in China in time, his family and friends were worried about his safety. "They were even ready to contact the Chinese Embassy in Fiji to confirm my safety, raising their excessive concerns." Yang Honglian said.
Screenshot of the apology in the Chinese WeChat group (courtesy of the interviewee)
Yang Honglian introduced that the Tonga volcano gradually began to erupt on the 14th, and an eruption on the 15th led to a strong impact. At about 5 p.m. local time on the 15th in Fiji, the public heard the roaring sound from the volcanic eruption, but the people mistakenly thought that this was just the thunder brought by the rainy season, and at the same time felt the slight vibration of the glass doors and windows of the house.
Before the tsunami after the tonga eruption, Yang Honglian learned through a brief live broadcast by a former Fijian journalist in Tonga that the Tonga government had organized local people to go to the highlands for safety.
"On the 16th, the Fijian government canceled the tsunami warning, and Xinhua News Agency said in the report that the volcanic ash released by the volcanic eruption in Tonga only reached the southern waters of Fiji on the 17th, and on the 15th and 16th, Fiji had no volcanic ash at all." Yang Honglian said that the Tonga tsunami is not without any impact on Fiji, the eastern islands are implicated by disasters, if there is volcanic ash and acid rain in Fiji in the future, the biggest impact should be the countryside on the small islands in the east of Fiji, and the capital Suva and the western Nadi and other large cities will not be greatly affected.
The video spread by the Fijian Chinese on social platforms quickly attracted the attention of the Fijian Chinese community, who talked about it in the Chinese WeChat group. Fang Yuan, president of the Fiji Chinese Women's Association and overseas member of the China Federation of Returned Overseas Chinese, told Jimu News that the young man who disseminated the relevant video had apologized to everyone in the Chinese WeChat group, and the other party said that his starting point was to record his true feelings and some of the influences suffered nearby, but did not take into account that the situation faced by overseas Chinese compatriots in Fiji was different, and the future would deeply reflect and adjust the content. Fang Yuan believes that this apology is not sincere.
Fang Yuan said that the other party said in the video that it was raining acid in Fiji, so many Chinese also tested the rain and tap water of Nadi and South Taigang at different times on the 18th, and the PH value was within the normal range.
The Embassy issued a precautionary alert
At about 4 p.m. on January 17, the Chinese Embassy in Fiji issued a consular reminder on precautions after the eruption, saying that due to the volcanic eruption in Tonga, fiji's Ministry of Environment said that it had detected an increase in the concentration of sulfur dioxide (SO₂) in the atmospheric environment that day, which may lead to nationwide acidic rainfall. The National Disaster Management Office of Fiji recommended that the people of the Eastern Sector take the necessary measures to prevent volcanic ash hazards. Fijian Health Department reminds the public that short-term exposure to ashes does not pose a major health hazard, but may cause breathing difficulties in sensitive individuals such as infants, children and the elderly, and that people with respiratory diseases such as chronic bronchitis, emphysema and asthma may experience acute respiratory symptoms.
The Chinese Embassy in Fiji reminds Chinese citizens in Fiji to maintain a high degree of vigilance, pay close attention to the relevant information released by local media and official agencies, stay indoors as much as possible, and if they really need to go out, they should wear long clothes and trousers, wear glasses and masks, cover their skin, eyes, mouth and nose, and pay attention to avoid rain.
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