Nuku’alofa, Tonga –
More than four years on from one of the most powerful volcanic eruptions in history, Tonga is struggling to improve its infrastructure as it pays off a massive Chinese loan.
When Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai erupted on Jan. 15, 2022, the blast could be heard as far away as Alaska and sent a powerful tsunami crashing into Tonga’s main island some 65 kilometers away, killing three people.
Hundreds of homes were destroyed, businesses flattened and roads washed out, while most water supplies were left undrinkable as more than 15 centimeters of ash fell on the Tongan islands.