Caritas support helps Tonga prepare for future disasters

The Caritas Tonga Disaster Preposition Stock Warehouse was blessed by Cardinal Soane Mafi this month. Among the guests at the blessing were Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand chief executive Mena Antonio, Mafua Maka, director for the National Disaster Risk Management Office of Tonga, and Msgr Lutoviko Fīnau, vicar general of the Catholic Diocese of Tonga.

Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand was a partner with Caritas Tonga on the project.

The warehouse will be stocked with items such as hygiene kits, buckets and jerry cans, kitchen supplies, face masks, soap, blankets and water purification kits for rapid distribution.

The warehouse has taken several years to complete. It is a response to the lessons learned from the 2022 Hunga Tonga – Hunga Ha’apai eruption and tsunami, which displaced thousands of families from their homes. The disaster affected 84 per cent of the population.

Like many Pacific nations, Tonga is prone to disasters. This has been exacerbated in recent years by climate change. The warehouse will help Tonga to manage disaster risk. It will save lives and speed up the road to recovery when the next humanitarian crisis hits.

Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand was the donor partner for the project, a Catholic Diocese of Tonga Facebook post stated.

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When disasters strike, emergency… (Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand/Facebook)

Catholic Diocese of Tonga | Facebook (Catholic Diocese of Tonga/Facebook)