Photo caption:听Back row (left to right) 鈥 Valeliano Tovi (TGS), Taniela Veleika (TGS), Tupou Ika (TGS), Tu鈥檌ahai Tu鈥檌afitu (TGS), Pupunu Tukuafu (TGS). Front row (left to right) 鈥 Carol Stewart (Massey University), Heather Craig, Fiapaipai Auapaau, James Williams, Finn Scheele (Earth Sciences New 茄子视频app官网(ESNZ)) Photo credit: Kiao Matahau (TGS).
Led by Dr James H. Williams and Dr Heather Craig from Te Whare W膩nanga o Waitaha | 茄子视频app官网 (UC) Disaster Risk and Resilience Group, the UC team has been working alongside Tonga Geological Services (TGS) and local and regional partners to learn lessons that can be applied to future events.
Building on three years of collaboration in both Aotearoa New 茄子视频app官网and Pule驶anga Fakatu驶i 驶o Tonga | the Kingdom of Tonga, the project examines how Tongan communities and agencies recovered following the eruption and tsunami.听
鈥淎fter the eruption, we carried out a remote rapid impact assessment, since we couldn鈥檛 enter the country due to covid-19 restrictions; in-field collaboration has been underway since 2023,鈥 Dr Williams says. The team collected 3D imagery across villages, air quality data, and community impact information to provide a detailed picture of local recovery and long-term environmental change.听
鈥淥ur initial remote impact assessment showed that computer models used to estimate volcanic impacts in the Pacific, including New Zealand, were highly inaccurate. We realised we needed much better local data to improve them,鈥 Dr Williams says.
The research is a two-way exchange of knowledge contributing to a broader understanding of disaster resilience and impact assessment. 鈥淏y understanding how Tongan agencies and communities responded and recovered, we can draw knowledge that helps others prepare for and respond to future events.听
鈥淲hile working closely with partner agencies, we can ensure the data collected has real value for local communities as well as the wider scientific community. Data improves the ability to forecast, respond to, and recover from natural hazards,鈥 Dr Williams says.听
Dr Craig says there are valuable lessons to be learnt for Aotearoa New Zealand. 鈥淣ot only can we learn lessons on response and recovery to volcanic and tsunami events from the Tonga experience, but also important learnings in terms of how scientists can better communicate risk and make their science impactful.鈥
The team has recently published a paper on the initial assessment, identifying the need for more on-the-ground data after volcanic events.听
鈥淐ollecting this information will help make future impact models more accurate and useful in disaster planning, with findings already helping inform resilience and recovery work in Tonga,鈥 Dr Williams says.
The Tonga fieldwork supports several UC postgraduate projects, including tsunami impact studies, the development of a Geospatial Disaster Data Hub, and a framework for locally relevant hazard information to guide future disaster planning in Tonga. UC PhD candidate Fiapaipai Auapaau, who was part of the field team, examined the eruption鈥檚 impacts on Tongan agricultural crops, contributing to the country鈥檚 recovery and food security efforts.
Findings from earlier UC assessments have also been used by , a local agricultural organisation, to secure continued government funding for volcanic recovery and agricultural resilience projects.
