Philippine Embassy in NZ Following the Situation of Filipino Communities

On Saturday, an underwater volcano located in the South Pacific erupted violently which triggered massive tsunamis in Tonga and two Pacific islands. With this, the Philippine Embassy in New Zealand has been following the developments as around 800 Filipinos are current residents of the affected islands.

In Tonga, there are at least 87 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), most of whom are teachers, missionaries, divers, household service workers, tailors, accountants, entrepreneurs, and government service workers. Its largest island, Tongatapu, was already hit by a tsunami following the violent eruption.

While there is no Philippine Embassy established in Tonga, the Philippine Embassy in Wellington has jurisdiction over the Pacific island as well as Samoa, Fiji, and Cook Islands. Jesus Domingo, the Philippine Ambassador to New Zealand, has affirmed that they have been reaching out to the Filipino community in Tonga but communication to the island state has been disconnected.

“Post was able to reach out to friends and relatives of Filipinos in Tonga, who have conveyed unofficial reports that the tsunami warning is still up,” explained Domingo. The Embassy is also monitoring the situation in Samoa and Fiji where there are 300 and 400 Filipino workers, respectively. Meanwhile, Filipinos in Samoa have already been reached, where most residents in low-lying areas have since moved to higher ground for safety.

“Philippine Consulate in Suva, Fiji has reported that there are no Filipino casualties and that the tsunami warning has been lifted (Saturday),” said Domingo. As communication systems have been significantly disrupted, “Coordination efforts with local authorities and community leaders are ongoing to ascertain the situation on the ground and the condition of the Filipinos in Tonga, Samoa, and Fiji,” assured the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).

Sources: CNN PH, BusinessMirror