(Health Times reporter Kong Tianjiao) "When we heard the first sound, we thought it was an earthquake, and when we heard the second sound, we quickly closed the door of the shop and ran to a place with high terrain, at first there was no volcanic ash falling, after more than ten minutes, there was volcanic ash falling, and the sky slowly darkened." On January 22, a health times reporter contacted Wei Cong (pseudonym), who witnessed the volcanic eruption in Tonga.
"At present, a week has passed, and various situations have slowly returned to normal, only water resources are somewhat scarce, but the water is already in normal production, and according to the coordination of the local government, the water will also return to normal next week." Wei Cong told the Health Times reporter.
Located about 65 kilometers north of the capital of Tonga, Nuku'alofa, The Hong Aha Apay Volcano began to erupt continuously on the morning of January 14, local time, and there was another major eruption on the afternoon of January 15, the eruption lasted up to 8 minutes on the 15th, and the volcanic eruption caused a large amount of volcanic ash and water vapor to enter the sky 20 kilometers high, forming a huge white cloud at the sky.
When the Tonga volcano erupted, the picture is from CCTV News
"Volcanic plumes that enter the atmosphere contain a lot of gases, such as sulfur dioxide, but rain washes them down." Shane Cronin, a volcanologist at the University of Auckland in New Zealand, once said in an interview with Xinhua News Agency: "On The island of Tabu in Tonga (where the capital is located), volcanic ash is about two centimeters thick. This ash affects drinking water resources and some crops such as corn, bananas and pumpkins. But without further volcanic eruptions, crops should be able to recover more quickly. ”
"Due to Tonga's tropical climate, there may be acid rain around Tonga for some time to come," Cronin said. If the volcano continues to erupt, causing acid rain to continue, it can cause more damage to crops and water supplies. ”
Wei Cong from Fuzhou, Fujian Province, not long ago went to tonga capital Nuku Alofa to run a supermarket, when the tonga volcano erupted, Wei Cong was operating normally in the supermarket, because tonga from time to time there are small earthquakes, the first sound made Wei Cong think it was an earthquake, and did not care, after hearing two loud noises, Wei Cong felt that something was wrong, he closed the store door and went out.
The 22nd capital road of Tonga is a volcanic ash accumulation, pictured from CCTV News
Recalling the scene at that time, Wei Cong was still afraid in his heart, he said: "The sound at that time was like the sound of cannons, very frightening, and when we went out, we saw a big mushroom cloud in the sky, thick smoke rolling, before and after about six or seven sounds, for safety, we all ran to a high place, after the volcanic ash fell, the wipers on the car could not be brushed, the sky slowly darkened, there was a power outage, water and disconnection. ”
"A few days ago because of the volcanic eruption, the network has not been good, today is better, telephone communication and communication has been OK, but now the recovery is the 2G network, WeChat voice, pictures generally used or interrupted, the back should slowly improve." When the Health Times reporter contacted Wei Cong, he was turning on the fan to blow cold, "The temperature in Tonga has not been low, it is relatively hot." ”
Dust had fallen on the roof, and now that the wind was blowing, there would still be dust. Wei Cong told reporters, "After the eruption of the volcano, we always wear masks to protect ourselves and prevent respiratory infections caused by mountain ash. ”
Wei Cong said: "Now that the power and network have basically returned to normal life, there is a feeling of the rest of the disaster, and I look forward to seeing the blue sky and white clouds as soon as possible." ”