SYDNEY, March 14, 2022 (BSS/AFP) - Tongan prime minister Siaosi Sovaleni
has tested positive for Covid-19, his office said Monday, as his Pacific
island nation continues its recovery from a devastating volcanic eruption and
tsunami.

  While Tonga was able to remain Covid-free for much of the pandemic, cases
began to rise soon after international aid ships from Australia and New
Zealand arrived in the wake of a powerful January 15 tsunami, which claimed
at least three lives.

  There have since been 1,032 Covid-19 cases in Tonga with no deaths recorded
as yet, according to the World Health Organization.

  Sovaleni was experiencing only mild symptoms and would continue his duties
while isolating at home, his office said Monday.

  "We are now adjusting our lives and affairs as we learn to live with Covid-
19 and I will continue to serve His Majesty, Government and our People during
my time in isolation," the prime minister said.

  The cataclysmic January 15 eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai
volcano -- located about 65 kilometres (40 miles) from Tonga's capital,
Nuku'alofa -- caused a shockwave that reverberated around the globe several
times and shrouded Tonga's islands in a thick layer of ash.

  A subsequent tsunami, which hit Tonga soon after, swept residents to their
deaths, destroyed homes and buildings and severed the nation's undersea
communication cable, cutting off communication with the outside world for
weeks.