Cut Off by Volcano, Tongans Relieved as Contact Restored

This photo provided by Broadcom Broadcasting shows a damaged area in Nuku’alofa, Tonga, on Jan. 20, 2022. Marian Kupu/Broadcom Broadcasting via AP

BANGKOK—As the massive undersea Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha’apai volcano erupted on Saturday, Tongans from around the world gazed on as their relatives live-streamed images of billowing clouds of ash, gas, and steam emerging from beneath the depths.

Then darkness.