Tonga struggles with ash, psychological trauma after eruption and tsunami

The anxiety of many Tongan families overseas was prolonged in the days it took for limited international call capacity to be restored.Cut off from the world, Tongans got on with immediate rescue efforts, Fonua said.Older Tongans with a tradition of self-reliance remarked that young people had been forced to stop looking at their smart phones and had leapt into action, she said.With power restored after a week, the Matangi Tonga website posted its first story on Saturday since the eruption and tsunami, describing the "pumice rain", as volcanic debris fell from the sky, and waves that engulfed cars.Still, her office cannot send email and Tonga needs more satellite capacity, Fonua said.The international navy ships and flights arriving had brought much needed supplies and communication equipment, she said.Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.Subscribe to our daily curated newsletter to receive the latest exclusive Reuters coverage delivered to your inbox.Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the world’s largest multimedia news provider, reaching billions of people worldwide every day.