A British woman who was swept away by surging waves after an underwater volcano violently erupted near Tonga on Saturday has been confirmed as the disaster's first fatality.
The Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai eruption, one of the largest in the past 30 years, has left the island nation blanketed with ash and without power, with communications infrastructure significantly impacted. A Pacific-wide tsunami triggered by the blast ripped through the western coastline of Tonga's main island, Tongatapu, causing widespread damage.
Angela Glover, originally from the seaside city of Brighton, had been trying to save her dogs from the rolling waves when she lost her grip on a tree, according to reports.
The 50-year-old's final post to Instagram was a photo of a stunning sunset, captured after an earlier eruption of Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai. Glover reassured family and friends that "everything's fine" despite the tsunami warnings, noting "a few swells" and "eerie silences".
According to reports, Glover and her husband had relocated to Tonga in 2015 and operated an animal rescue shelter, Tonga Animal Welfare Society. It's understood the 50-year-old had been desperately trying to rescue her dogs when the tsunami hit, but was washed away by the surging tides when she lost her grip on a tree. James Glover, who survived, managed to cling on.
Speaking to Sky News outside the family home in Hove, East Sussex, Glover's brother, Nick Eleini, confirmed a body had been found in the search for his sister.
"I've not even got the words in my vocabulary to describe how we're feeling at the moment. This is just a terrible shock that it's happened to us. We're ordinary people - stuff like this doesn't happen to people like us, then it does," he told the outlet.
"There had been a search party that was going on and I believe James found the body.
"I understand this terrible accident came about as they tried to rescue their dogs. Angela and James loved their life in Tonga and adored the Tonga people."
Eleini described his sister as a "ray of sunshine".
"She loved her life, both when she was working in London and then she achieved her life's dream of living in the South Pacific.
"We are so proud of her achievements in such a short time in Tonga, starting a business and creating a life there. She loved animals and dogs particularly - the uglier the dog, the more she loved it.
"We are just broken."
Initial reports suggest no mass casualties from Saturday's eruption and subsequent tsunami, but those on-the-ground in Tonga have reported significant damage.
New Zealand and Australia deployed reconnaissance flights to Tonga on Monday to assess the aftermath of the violent explosion. A Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) P-3K2 Orion aircraft departed Auckland's Whenuapai air base early that morning to assist in an initial impact assessment of the area and low-lying islands.
A spokesperson for the Defence Force confirmed a RNZAF Hercules is on standby to fly to Tonga on Tuesday to deliver aid supplies if is safe to land at the runway on Tongatapu.
"We have placed personnel on shortened notices to move and Royal New Zealand Navy ships are being readied for deployment and may deploy ahead of a formal request for assistance, given the distance to Tonga," the spokesperson said.
"Further military flights are also possible, to transport relief supplies and personnel as required."
