A carpenter from Tonga spent more than a day in the water after the tsunami swept him into the sea.

A 57-year-old man with a disability survived in Tonga after the tsunami. He spent 27 hours in the ocean before being rescued.

Lisala Folau, 57, a resident of Atata Island, was swept into the sea during the eruption of the Hunga Tonga–Hung Ha’apai volcano. Both of his legs do not function properly, and due to his disability the man mostly works at home, is engaged in carpentry, works on the farm.

He was at home that day. His brother warned him about the approaching tsunami, but the man did not have time to evacuate, his house was flooded.

According to Folau, the wave was at least 6 meters or about 20 feet high. He and his niece held on to a tree while his older brother searched for someone who could evacuate them to safety.

“My elder brother yelled out to us [that] there was a big wave coming in. I just turned and looked at the wave; it was a bigger wave than the 6 meters that destroyed our house,” says Folau.

They swam in the water, shouting at each other, but it was dark and nothing could be seen. Eventually, the man heard his son calling him from the shore.

“The truth is no son can abandon his father. I kept my silence for if I answered him he would [have] jumped in and try to rescue me. But I understand the tough situation and I thought if the worst comes and it is only me,” says the man.

The man continued to swim and look for something to jump on to survive. He stumbled upon a piece of wood and grabbed it.

So many hours passed.

“The pathway in the ocean and it stayed with my mind if I can cling to a tree or anything and if anything happen and I lose my life, searchers may find me and my family can view my dead body.I was thinking after floating and drifting I landed on hard ground then I would seek help,” the man recalls.

At about 7 am, he saw a police patrol boat passing by and started waving his clothes to be noticed, but he was not seen, so the boat went on.

The man decided to try to sail to the island of Polo. At about 6 pm he sailed to his destination, covering 7.5 km.

There he saw a car, the driver of which drove him to his village.

“It was the manna of God to me and my family, and the church as well as Atata, so unexpected that I survived after being washed away, floating and surviving the dangers I just faced,” Folau adds.

After such adventures, the locals began to call the man Aquaman.

The island where Folau lives is home to about 70 people, many of whom have fled the elements in a Mormon church. Almost all the houses were destroyed by the elements, but, fortunately, not a single local died.

There is almost nothing left of Atata – like many other islands of the archipelago. The victims were at least three people, including a British woman who tried to save her dogs from the tsunami.

Image Credit: Getty

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