Toward the end of 2021, the volcano was again active and the island had grown in size but by Jan. 11 the Tongan Geological Services declared it dormant again. Then, on Jan. 14, Tongan Geological Services released a public notice that “eruption is forecast to be imminent.”
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/International/tonga2-jan-6-2022-file-gty-ml-220120_1642695984516_hpEmbed_3x2_384.jpg\")
Satellite Image/Maxar Technologies/AFP via Getty Images
PHOTO: The Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha'apai volcano on Jan. 6, 2022.
At 4:20 a.m. local time on Jan. 14, the volcano exploded seven times more forcefully than it had in December and blasted ash, steam and gas 12.4 miles into the air. It set off a foot-high tsunami wave that was measured in the Tongan capital.
Later that day, the Tongan Geological Services posted spectacular videos of the explosive volcano.
Video: Volcano erupts near Tonga
Then a second eruption began on Jan. 15 at about 5:10 p.m. local time, according to NOAA. This eruption released a volcanic mushroom plume which reached the stratosphere and covered the whole Tongan archipelago, according to the government. It also triggered a much larger tsunami which hit the shores of Tongatapu shortly afterwards with waves rising to 15 meters. A South Korean satellite captured the second eruption.
Video: South Korean satellite captures volcano near Tonga
What happened next is difficult to say because communication with the islands was cut off. The whole archipelago was blanketed in an ash cloud.
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/International/tonga5-rt-ml-220120_1642697498784_hpEmbed_17x15_384.jpg\")
NOAA/SSEC/CIMSS via Reuters
PHOTO: A plume rises over Tonga after the underwater volcano Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai erupted in this satellite image taken by Himawari-8 on Jan. 15, 2022.
The first images the world saw of Tonga came from satellites on Jan. 18, after the ash cloud had cleared, but before planes could fly to the island or communication had been restored. These before and after images show the damage:
This shows the ash that blanketed the island on Jan. 18:
This shows the damage from the tsunami that reached the capital on Jan. 15:
The next images we saw were from Australian and New Zealand survey planes which flew around the islands to assess the destruction. They couldn't land because the runways weren't clear:
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/International/tonga8-gty-ml-220120_1642697498790_hpEmbed_3x2_384.jpg\")
New Zealand Defense Force via Getty Images
PHOTO: An aerial view from a P-3K2 Orion surveillance flight of homes covered in ash on Jan. 17, 2022 Nomuka, Tonga.
It wasn't until Jan. 20 for the capital's runways to be clear enough for planes to land with aid supplies. The first images to come out of Tonga show the ash that fell on the island.
The Australian government planes were the first to land:
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/International/tonga7-rt-ml-220120_1642697498788_hpEmbed_5x3_384.jpg\")
New Zealand High Commission/Nukualofa Tonga via Reuters
PHOTO: Personnel load humanitarian relief supplies sent by New Zealand are seen next to an aircraft at Fua'amotu International Airport on the island of Tongatapu, Tonga, Jan. 20, 2022.
We got our first view of the destruction at ground level:
Video: Tonga devastated by volcanic eruption
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/International/tonga9-sh-ml-220120_1642697498793_hpEmbed_23x14_384.jpg\")
Chine Nouvelle/SIPA via Shutterstock
PHOTO: Houses and infrastructures hit by tsunami in Nuku'alofa, capital of Tonga, Jan. 20, 2022.
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/International/tonga6a-rt-ml-220120_1642698246409_hpEmbed_20x9_384.jpg\")
Marian Kupu/Broadcom Broadcasting via Reuters
PHOTO: A view of a beach and debris following volcanic eruption and tsunami, in Nuku'alofa, Tonga, Jan. 18, 2022.
Shockwaves around the world:
The tsunami triggered by the second eruption reached Fiji within a couple of hours and Vanuatu after that.
Waves hit the shore by night in Port Vila, Vanuatu, on Jan. 15:
Video: Waves from Tonga’s volcanic eruption reach Vanuatu
Flooding in Santa Cruz, California, on Jan. 15:
Video: California coasts flood following Tonga eruption
By the time this satellite could see through the ash cloud on Jan. 16, the volcanic island had almost completely disappeared.
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/International/tonga3-jan-18-2022-gty-ml-220120_1642695984521_hpEmbed_3x2_384.jpg\")
Satellite Image/Maxar Technologies/AFP via Getty Images
PHOTO: The Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha'apai volcano on Jan. 18, 2022.
