ISLAND’S ERUPTION

Greymouth Evening Star, 1 August 1929, Page 6

ISLAND’S ERUPTION

PLANTATIONS DESTROYED (Australian Press Association.) (By Cable—Press Assn.—Copyright.) SUVA, July 31. The steamer Tofua passed Niuafoo on Sunday. A European storekeeper reported that earthquakes preceded the eruption on July 5, the lava flowing from five to eight craters towards the sea, practically wiping out the village of Fatu. Some portions were left intact. Fifteen to twenty other craters are inactive. The lava reached within two miles of the village of Agata. The eruption was not fierce. The craters simply bubbling over, threw stones, etc., into the air fifteen to twenty feet. There were no casual, 1 ties, the natives taking to the hills. About two thousand coconut plantations were destroyed. The Morris Hedstram Coy. and Burns, Philp lost copra stores. The village of Fatu suffered a loss estimated at £2OOO. The lava flow was from fifty to a hundred yards wide. When the Tofua left, active eruptions had ceased, and only steam and smoke were issuing from the craters. The inhabitants include a thousand Tongans, two European storekeepers, a French priest, and two Sisters of Mercy.