Stunning images show aftermath of eruption and tsunami in the Pacific
Share
After an enormous undersea volcano erupted off the coast of Tonga on Saturday, photos and videos taken across the Pacific have captured the aftermath of the eruption, as well as the tsunami that followed.
The phenomenon prompted authorities worldwide to issue tsunami warnings and advisories as far away as British Columbia and Alaska, where a sonic boom could even be heard.
Images taken on the ground in Pacific coastal communities have shown the effects of the eruption -- from the massive mushroom cloud-like plumes of ash that it produced to the infrastructure damage caused by tsunami waves and flooding.
The Tongan Geological Services observe the plume of ash and smoke from the Hunga Tonga volcano. (Tongan Geological Services/Facebook)
The Tonga Geological Services reported that the plume of smoke reached as high as 20 kilometres above sea level, spanning a radius of 240 kilometres. The agency also reported that ashfall had occurred on some of Tonga's islands, which can cause stinging or irritation to the eyes.
In a Facebook livestream verified by the news agency Storyful, Tonga resident Deborah Mahe filmed herself in a flooded church, with the water up to at least her ankles inside the building. Outside the window, floodwaters could be seen rapidly rushing through the street.
Another Facebook livestream from Tongan resident Ray Kalonihea Tu'itakau shows trees and houses along the shoreline completely consumed by tsunami waves.
People look at a damaged boat in a marina at Tutukaka, New Zealand, Sunday, Jan. 16, 2022, after waves from a volcano eruption swept into the marina.
A dock is torn apart in a marina at Tutukaka, New Zealand, Sunday, Jan. 16, 2022, after waves from a volcano eruption swept into the marina. (Tanya White/Northern Advcate/NZME via AP)
At a marina in Tutukaka, New Zealand, tsunami waves tore apart docks and overturned boats. (Tanya White/Northern Advcate/NZME via AP)
Tsunami surge inundates the parking lot at the top of the Upper Harbor in Santa Cruz, Calif., on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
In Santa Cruz, Calif., nearly 8,500 kilometres from where the volcano erupted, tsunami waters surged through the harbour and inundated a parking lot. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)
Footage filmed by Pacifica, Calif. resident Savannah Peterson and confirmed by Storyful shows sea foam and waves crashing along the beachfront on Saturday morning and jumping over the seawall.
Three people have been arrested and charged in the killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar – as authorities continue investigating potential connections to the Indian government.
TD Bank Group could be hit with more severe penalties than previously expected, says a banking analyst after a report that the investigation it faces in the U.S. is tied to laundering illicit fentanyl profits.
As Wegovy becomes available to Canadians starting Monday, a medical expert is cautioning patients wanting to use the drug to lose weight that no medication is a ''magic bullet,' and the new medication is meant particularly for people who meet certain criteria related to obesity and weight.
Spain scrapped an annual bullfighting award on Friday, prompting a rebuke from conservatives over a backlash against a centuries-old tradition they see as an art form but which has run into growing concern for animal welfare.
Drew Carey took over as host of 'The Price Is Right' and hopes he’s there for life. 'I'm not going anywhere,' he told 'Entertainment Tonight' of the job he took over from longtime host Bob Barker in 2007.
York Regional Police say they are continuing to search for a suspect in an auto theft investigation who was captured on video running over a police officer in Toronto last month.
Protesters donned rain ponchos and huddled in tents at a pro-Palestinian encampment at the University of Toronto on Friday as they faced wet and windy conditions during the second day of a demonstration calling on the school to distance itself from Israel.
A francophone man in British Columbia convicted of sexual assault will get a new trial because he was not informed of his right to be tried in French, the Supreme Court ruled Friday.
As Wegovy becomes available to Canadians starting Monday, a medical expert is cautioning patients wanting to use the drug to lose weight that no medication is a ''magic bullet,' and the new medication is meant particularly for people who meet certain criteria related to obesity and weight.
Spain scrapped an annual bullfighting award on Friday, prompting a rebuke from conservatives over a backlash against a centuries-old tradition they see as an art form but which has run into growing concern for animal welfare.
A zebra that escaped from a trailer east of Seattle last weekend remained on the lam Friday, as authorities closed off trailheads at a nature area in hopes of keeping people away and easing her capture.
An Israeli incursion in Rafah would put the lives of hundreds of thousands of Gazans at risk and be a huge blow to the aid operations of the entire enclave, the U.N. humanitarian office said on Friday, as the World Health Organization announced contingency plans for an incursion.
Donald Trump's 2016 campaign was seized with worry about the potential political damage from a tape that showed Trump bragging about grabbing women sexually without their permission, longtime Trump adviser Hope Hicks testified Friday at his hush money trial.
Police ordered pro-Palestinian protesters to clear out of a tent encampment at New York University early Friday, a move that follows weeks of demonstrations and police confrontations at college campuses nationwide that have resulted in more than 2,300 arrests.
They're lounging, biting each other and generally making a ruckus in numbers not seen in more than a decade. And don't even think about stealing their anchovies.
Foreign interference by China did not affect the overall results of the 2019 and 2021 general elections won by Justin Trudeau's Liberals, a federal commission of inquiry has found.
Three people have been arrested and charged in the killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar – as authorities continue investigating potential connections to the Indian government.
Commissioner Marie-Josee Hogue released her interim report examining foreign election interference on Friday. Here are five elements of the issue that Hogue says she needs to further probe before she can make conclusions or recommendations.
As Wegovy becomes available to Canadians starting Monday, a medical expert is cautioning patients wanting to use the drug to lose weight that no medication is a ''magic bullet,' and the new medication is meant particularly for people who meet certain criteria related to obesity and weight.
Google's preeminence as an internet search engine is an illegal monopoly propped up by more than US$20 billion spent each year by the tech giant to lock out competition, U.S. Justice Department lawyers argued at the closings of a high-stakes antitrust lawsuit.
Many species of animals form social groups and behave collectively: An elephant herd follows its matriarch, flocking birds fly in unison, humans gather at concert events. Even humble fruit flies organize themselves into regularly spaced clusters, researchers have found.
China on Friday launched a lunar probe to land on the far side of the moon and return with samples that could provide insights into differences between the less-explored region and the better-known near side.
Drew Carey took over as host of 'The Price Is Right' and hopes he’s there for life. 'I'm not going anywhere,' he told 'Entertainment Tonight' of the job he took over from longtime host Bob Barker in 2007.
Alberta Ballet's double-bill production of 'Der Wolf' and 'The Rite of Spring' marks not only its final show of the season, but the last production for twin sisters Alexandra and Jennifer Gibson.
TD Bank Group could be hit with more severe penalties than previously expected, says a banking analyst after a report that the investigation it faces in the U.S. is tied to laundering illicit fentanyl profits.
Ontario is set to clamp down on bad employers with big fines. Labour Minister David Piccini says his government will introduce legislation next week that will see fines increased for violations of the Employment Standards Act.
Italy's Ministry of Health has banned the popular wellness trend of "puppy yoga" amid concerns that the puppies used in the practice could be exploited and mistreated.
A Montreal astrologer and horoscope writer just got a boost on his retirement budget, after winning Loto-Quebec’s Grande-Vie prize, which comes in the form of $1,000 a day for life.
Rick Bowness of the Winnipeg Jets, Rick Tocchet of the Vancouver Canucks and Andrew Brunette of the Nashville Predators are the finalists for this season's Jack Adams Award.
Drivers in Saskatchewan will now lose their licence for a week and their vehicle for a month if they are caught committing certain high-speed and dangerous offences on the road.
Rolls-Royce is vastly expanding its factory in Chichester, England. The BMW subsidiary is adding five new buildings with construction planned to start next year.
Alberta Ballet's double-bill production of 'Der Wolf' and 'The Rite of Spring' marks not only its final show of the season, but the last production for twin sisters Alexandra and Jennifer Gibson.
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
Three people have been arrested and charged in the killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar – as authorities continue investigating potential connections to the Indian government.
A California man has been sentenced to 27 months in prison for attempting to smuggle a ghost gun across the Canadian border last year, authorities announced Friday.
The Indian couple killed in a wrong-way police chase crash on Highway 401 earlier this week has been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
York Regional Police say they are continuing to search for a suspect in an auto theft investigation who was captured on video running over a police officer in Toronto last month.
Mandatory Alcohol Screening has been in place in Alberta for the past few years and a move by the Ontario Provincial Police to begin enforcing breath samples at all traffic stops is being applauded by local victims of impaired driving.
Photographers will tell you that one of the best times to capture incredible images is just after sunrise or right before sunset. That time is known as the golden hour. It's the light that starts each day, offering hope and wonder about the day ahead. Griffin Bell exemplified that hope and light in a way that few others ever will.
Residents of an Orléans neighbourhood are voicing their frustration as overnight work on Stage 2 LRT causes disturbances for those living next to the construction site.
Quebec Premier François Legault reiterated that the pro-Palestinian encampment at McGill University must be dismantled while police remain 'on the lookout for new developments.'
A Quebec judge overseeing the trial of a person accused of killing a cyclist with their car has raised concerns that an amendment to the province's language charter could cause 'undue delays' for trials held in English.
A man accused of arson in a January Old Strathcona apartment fire is expected to be charged with manslaughter after a body was discovered in the burned building late last month.
The Edmonton Oilers are waiting to strategize for Round 2 until their next National Hockey League playoff opponent — either the Vancouver Canucks or the Nashville Predators — is determined, says their head coach.
Fishery officers seized nearly 30 kilograms of elvers at a Yarmouth County, N.S., holding facility on Wednesday, arresting three people in the process.
An initiative called the Mandatory Alcohol Screening (MAS) program is designed to cut down on the number of drunk drivers on the road in the Halifax area.
A Manitoba man who pleaded guilty to keeping the funds raised from an ice-fishing fundraiser for the Children's Hospital Foundation of Manitoba has been handed a sentence of 18 months house arrest.
The North Central Family Centre (NCFC) has launched a capital campaign to help aid in the completion of a major project they are in the midst of building.
More than 100 teachers at the Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) are learning they have been declared surplus will likely be out of a job as of Aug. 12.
Kaitlyn Braun, the Brantford, Ont. woman who previously admitted to deceiving doulas and is facing similar charges again, is not seeking bail at this time, her lawyer said Friday.
The jury deciding the fate of a man responsible for a fatal firebombing in Sudbury found him guilty of three counts of first-degree murder Friday afternoon.
Three people have been arrested and charged in the killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar – as authorities continue investigating potential connections to the Indian government.
A family claims it’s concerned for their loved one in a Nanaimo-based long-term care facility as they work with staff and Island Health to resolve some of their complaints.
The first Arctic and Offshore Patrol Vessel for Canada's Pacific fleet will officially be commissioned in a ceremony featuring Princess Anne, the sister of King Charles.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
Search and rescue crews have been called in after a vehicle belonging to a missing senior was located near a rural intersection outside of Kelowna Tuesday.
The bell at Erle Rivers High School in Milk River, Alta., will ring for the last time on June 26, as the 114-year-old school is scheduled to be torn down to make way for a new K-12 school.
Phase 1 of the reconstruction of Queen Street in downtown Sault Ste. Marie is getting underway, although it will be scaled down from the original plan.
Richard Martin is spending this year's fishing season on land after he says a Royal Newfoundland Constabulary officer broke his left leg in three places during a protest last month that shut down the provincial legislature.