Swept away as she tried to rescue her beloved dogs: British animal charity worker killed in Tongan tsunami was discovered by her husband after he survived by clinging to a tree

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The body of a British woman missing on the island of Tonga was found by her husband who led a search party for her after she was swept away in the devastating tsunami, making her the first person known to have died in the disaster sparked by an underwater volcanic eruption.

Angela Glover, 50, an advertising worker from Brighton who met tattoo artist husband James in London before they married and moved to Tonga in 2015, had been missing since the island was hit by the enormous waves on Saturday evening when the nearby Hunga-Tonga volcano exploded.

She was last seen on a beach on the west of the island of Tongatapu by James as a 4ft wave came ashore. He survived by clinging to a tree, but Angela was unable to grab hold and was swept away while holding on to driftwood. James then found her body in nearby scrubland during a search on Monday, brother Nick Eleini said.

Nick, who lives in Australia but has today flown to the UK to be with mother Jennifer, told Sky News that his sister - who ran a dog shelter - was trying to save her pets when she was killed. Four of her five dogs were swept away in the tsunami, with only one found alive so far.

Mr Eleini, speaking outside the family home in Hove, said they are 'devastated' by the news - describing Angela as a 'beautiful' person who could 'light up a room'. 'She was absolutely a ray of sunshine,' he added.

Mrs Glover, who founded a dog rescue charity on Tonga - named TAWS  - had dedicated her life to helping abandoned and abused dogs.

He added: 'This terrible accident came about as they tried to rescue their dogs'.

Mr Eleini said the body of his sister Angela was found by her husband James. 

He told MailOnline: 'She was the centre of our family and we are just broken.'

Mr Eleini flew back to the UK from Australia to comfort their mother Jennifer, 85.

Fighting back tears, he said: 'There had been a search party and I believe James found the body and it was in some bushes.

'I'm not really aware of the geography in Tonga other than it's a low lying, scrubby, sandy area. She was found in that area.

Angela last saw her mum two years ago when she came back to Sussex for a visit. Mr Eleini said they were in constant contact online over three-way video conferences.

'I haven't got the words in my vocabulary to describe they way we are feeling at the moment.

Angela Glover, 50 (right with husband James), has been found dead on the Tongatapu island of Tonga, after it was hit by a devastating tsunami late on Saturday

Angela met husband James, a tattoo artist, in London while working in advertising, and the pair moved to Tonga in 2015 after getting married. They had been living in the village of Veitongo, where Angela ran a dog shelter

Just hours before the tsunami hit, Angela uploaded a haunting last image to Instagram of a blood-red sunset, saying the island was 'eerily quiet' after an earlier eruption at the same volcano 

'It's just a terrible shock. We are ordinary people and stuff like this just doesn't happen to people like us and then it does.' 

'Both when she was working in London and when she achieved her life's dream of going to work in the South Pacific. 

'She loved her life there and we are so proud of her achievements.

'In such a short time in Tonga they started a business and made a life there and her charity work.

'She was so committed to it. She loved animals and dogs in particular. The uglier the dog, the more she loved it.

'We would laugh at her when she sent us photographs of these dogs that she'd rescued.'

Mr Eleini said the family will make preparations to repatriate her body back to the UK.

'I have no idea what happens next but I believe there is a process we have to go through to repatriate Angela's body but I don't know what that is,' he said.

A statement issued by the family said: 'Angela and James loved their life in Tonga and adored the Tongan people. In particular, they loved the Tongan love of family and Tongan culture. 

'Since she was a little girl, it was always Angela's dream to swim with whales and it was Tonga that gave her the opportunity to fulfil these dreams. As you can imagine, her family is devastated and we respectfully request that we are given privacy to grieve.' 

Much of Tonga's communications network was destroyed in the blast, meaning news from the island has been infrequent and the overall toll of dead and injured remains a mystery. Undersea cable operators say it could take weeks to repair the damage, while aid workers say even satellite phones are struggling due to the ash cloud.

What little news has emerged suggests casualties on the main island of Togatapu are likely to be limited, but concern is mounting for the inhabitants of smaller outlying islands after a distress beacon was detected coming from a group of low-lying isles earlier today. 

The signal was traced to the Haʻapai island group, located around 85 miles north of the volcano - specifically from the Fonoi and Mango islands, where 105 people live. Other than the distress beacon, rescuers have had no contact with the islanders

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Hunga-Tonga island: A satellite image taken on December 8 (left) shows the peak of the volcano visible above the ocean. A second image taken on January 16 (right) shows how it has been all-but destroyed by the eruption

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Tongatapu island: An image taken on February 7 last year (left) shows the Tongan capital of Nuku'alofa before the tsunami struck, compared to an image taken on January 16 (right) which shows lots of water damage from the tsunami

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Uoleva island: An image taken in April last year (left) shows a village on one of the smaller islands near the volcano intact, and a second image taken on January 16  (right) shows how it was damaged by the tsunami and blanketed in ash

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Uiha island: An image taken in April last year (left) shows the main village on the island before the tsunami, while a second image taken on January 16 (right) shows damage and how the surroundings were covered in ash

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Nomuka island: A picture taken on May 30 last year (left) shows the island before the tsunami hit, while another image taken on January 16 (right) shows damage to the island after the wave struck

Dramatic official aerial maps showed the eruption cloud over Tonga after the Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha'apai volcanco erupted. Pictured: Satellite images of the volanic eruption in the Pacific Ocean on Saturday

Aid workers warn 80,000 of Tonga's 105,000 residents could be affected by the fall-out from the disaster, which includes ash blanketing homes and poisoning drinking water, sea water poisoning crops, and the destruction of homes and livelihoods.

'Further volcanic activity cannot be ruled out,' the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in the update on Monday, reporting only minor injuries but emphasising that formal assessments, especially of the outer islands, had yet to be released. 

Just hours before tragedy struck, Angela had uploaded a haunting image to Instragram alongside a message which said: 'We've been under tsunami warnings today, everything's fine. A few swells, a few eerie silences, a wind or two, then silence, sudden stillness, electric storms....'

The post was uploaded on Friday, after an initial eruption hit the Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha'apai volcano on Thursday evening and hours before the devastating second blast late Saturday which triggered the tsunami. 

Meanwhile new satellite images revealed the extent of the damage to the Hunga-Tonga volcano and surrounding islands, including Tongatapu itself where Angela was at the time the wave hit. 

The peak of Hunga-Tonga has been almost completely destroyed, with almost none of the volcanic island visible above sea level following the blast. Experts say the blast, likely the strongest anywhere on earth for the last 30 years, was triggered when superheated magma was thrown into the cold seawater.

Extensive flood damage is also visible in Nuku'alofa, the capital of Toga, with more flood damage visible on the nearby islands of Uoleva, Uiha and Nomuka, along with ash deposits as debris rained from the sky.

Professor Shane Cronin, a Tonga eruptions expert, shared images of the damage with MailOnline, saying: 'Eruptions over the last month have mainly destroyed new land mass created during 2014-2015 eruptions.

'The 30 December eruption added to that land mass, the 13 Jan one removed a lot of it, and the 15 Jan one destroyed almost all vestiges of it as well as reduced the size of the pre-existing islands.' 

Damage to internet cables has left thousands of overseas Tongans waiting anxiously for news of their loved ones as messages trickle off the islands, mainly via aid workers using satellite phones - though even these calls have been disrupted due to the density of an ash cloud that has blanketed the skies.

Besides leaving people in the dark about the fate of family, the internet cut threatened to hurt Tongans reliant on money transfers from relatives overseas.

'I think the worst part is the blackout and the fact that we know nothing,' said Filipo Motulalo, a New Zealand-based journalist with Pacific Media Network.

'There is no communication,' he added.

'Our home is among those close to the area that was flooded already so we don't know how much damage there is.' 

'I would say we're anxious, not fearful,' said the Auckland Tongan Community secretary, Kennedy Maeakafa Fakana'ana'a-ki-Fualu.

'We're hopeful everyone is alright. We accept there is a problem with the internet but we hope for the best,' he added.

Fakana'ana'a-ki-Fualu, who is arranging for containers of relief supplies to be sent to Tonga, said a cable fault preventing internet access was a serious issue for families reliant on funds sent by the Tongan community in New Zealand.

'That will be a problem and we will have to look at alternatives,' the community secretary said, adding that he expected the Tongan government, with support from New Zealand and Australia, 'will be able to do something to help out.'

Saturday's powerful eruption was heard as far away as Alaska and Finland and triggered a tsunami that swept through coastal houses in Tonga, damaging infrastructure and dumping boats and boulders on shore.

'We pray God will help our country at this sad moment. We hope everybody is safe,' Maikeli Atiola, the Secretary of the Wesleyan Church of Tonga in Auckland, told Radio New Zealand. 

The news came as Australia and New Zealand both made efforts to send aid and reconnaissance planes to the region. It remains unclear how many people were killed in the eruption and subsequent flooding.

Former Londoner Angela, who works for an animal charity, emigrated to Tonga five years ago.

On Sunday she took to social media to comment on the eruption, saying her home was under a tsunami warning. It is believed the waves hit minutes later.

Tattooist James is believed to have been able to cling to a tree but Angela, who runs a dog rescue centre on the island and several of her animals were swept away.

Her friend Donna Head posted on Facebook: 'Ange is still missing.'

She added: 'We must be optimistic and pray for a miracle… I'm trying to process that this beautiful happy face is missing.

'I shall continue to update when I have further news.'

She finished with the hashtag #prayforAnge. 

The eruption is the latest explosion on the islands in the past month after days of volatility on Tonga, which has seen smaller eruptions before

The volcanic eruption let out a huge plume of ash and has reportedly created a new island, although communications remain down on Tonga

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Left: A satellite image shows the underwater volcano Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai with a plume of smoke rising from it, days before the eruption. Right: The volcano two hours before its eruption in Tonga.

Another post read: 'My uncle held on to a tree but my Auntie and dogs were washed away.

'My uncle still hasn't been able to find my Auntie. If anyone has any information please reach out.'

As the search continued, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison pledged his country would supply aid to Tongans as soon as possible but added the ash cloud was adding to the logistical problems.

'There's been a lot of challenges there with the ash cloud and the disruption to communications and so we are working together to get as much support to Tonga as we possibly can,' Morrison said.

Australia's Minister for the Pacific Zed Seselja said initial reports suggested no mass casualties and that Tonga's airport 'appears to be in relatively good condition' but there were 'significant damage' to roads and bridges.

Seselja said Australia was liaising with the United States, New Zealand, France and other countries to coordinate responses.

New Zealand's Defence Minister Peeni Henare said at a news conference in Auckland that power had been restored in large parts of Nuku'alofa and some communications are back up.

A New Zealand Hercules C-130 would perform drops of essentials after the requirements are assessed and the navy will also be deployed.

New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Sunday that the tsunami had a significant impact on infrastructure.

Red Cross said it was mobilising its regional network to respond to what it called the worst volcanic eruptions the Pacific has experienced in decades.

'Red Cross has enough relief supplies to support 1,200 households with essential items such as tarpaulins, blankets, kitchen sets, shelter tool kits and hygiene kits,' said Katie Greenwood, IFRC's Pacific Head of Delegation told Reuters.

She said the agency is expecting up to 80,000 people to be affected by the tsumani

'That is what we are planning for as a worst-case scenario until we can get further confirmation from the people on the ground,' she said.

The agency said there were concerns that communities may not have access to safe drinking water as a result of saltwater inundation caused by the tsunami waves and ashfall.

The Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha'apai volcano has erupted regularly over the past few decades but the impact of Saturday's eruption was felt was far away as Fiji, New Zealand, the United States and Japan. Two people drowned off a beach in Northern Peru due to high waves caused by the tsunami.

Early data suggests the volcanic eruption was the biggest blast since Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines 30 years ago, New Zealand-based volcanologist Shane Cronin told Radio New Zealand.

'This is an eruption best witnessed from space,' Cronin said. 

Tonga volcano eruption as seen from Himawari-8 of the Japan Meteorological Agency. Hundreds of frightened Tongans fled to higher ground as the eruption triggered a tsunami in the island nation, with a four-foot wave observed in Tonga's capital Nuku'alofa

Locals pleaded for people to 'pray for us' as the eruption was compared to 'bombs going off' by those who heard it, followed by the tsunami surging ashore

In this satellite image taken by Himawari-8, a Japanese weather satellite, and released by the agency, shows an undersea volcano eruption at the Pacific nation of Tonga Saturday

'The large and explosive lateral spread of the eruption suggests that it was probably the biggest one since about the 1991 eruption of Pinatubo,' Cronin said.

'This is one of the massive explosions the volcano is capable of producing roughly every thousand years,' he added. 'We could be in for several weeks or even years of major volcanic unrest from the Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha'apai volcano. 

Satellite images showed a huge eruption, with a plume of ash, steam and gas rising above the sea. A sonic boom could be heard as far away as Alaska.

The Tonga Meteorological Services said a tsunami warning was declared for all of the archipelago, and data from the Pacific tsunami center said waves of 2.7 feet were detected.

Across the Pacific on California's central coast, the National Weather Service reported tsunami waves up to 4 feet (1.2 meters) and flooding in beach parking lots at Port San Luis. About 200 miles (320 km) down the coast, the waves were much smaller at Southern California's Seal Beach, according to Michael Pless, the owner of M&M Surf School.

Rachel Afeaki-Taumoepeau, who chairs the New Zealand Tonga Business Council, said she hoped the relatively low level of the tsunami waves would have allowed most people to get to safety, although she worried about those living on islands closest to the volcano.

She said she hadn't yet been able to contact her friends and family in Tonga.

Some churches in New Zealand organised community prayers in Auckland and other cities.

'We pray God will help our country at this sad moment. We hope everybody is safe,' Maikeli Atiola, the Secretary of the Wesleyan Church of Tonga in Auckland said, Radio New Zealand reported.

Ms Ardern said the main undersea communications cable has been impacted, likely due to loss of power.

Power was being restored in some areas on the islands and local mobile phones were slowly starting to work, she added.   

One complicating factor to any international aid effort is that Tonga has so far managed to avoid any outbreaks of Covid-19.

Ms Ardern said New Zealand's military staff were all fully vaccinated and willing to follow any protocols established by Tonga.

The Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha'apai volcano is located about 40 miles north of the capital, Nuku'alofa. In late 2014 and early 2015, a series of eruptions in the area created a small new island and disrupted international air travel to the Pacific archipelago for several days.

There is not a significant difference between volcanoes underwater and on land, and underwater volcanoes become bigger as they erupt, at some point usually breaching the surface, said Hans Schwaiger, a research geophysicist with the Alaska Volcano Observatory.

With underwater volcanoes, however, the water can add to the explosivity of the eruption as it hits the lava, Schwaiger added.

Before an explosion, there is generally an increase in small local earthquakes at the volcano, but depending on how far it is from land, that may not be felt by residents along the shoreline, Schwaiger said.

In 2019, Tonga lost internet access for nearly two weeks when a fiber-optic cable was severed. The director of the local cable company said at the time that a large ship may have cut the cable by dragging an anchor. Until limited satellite access was restored people couldn't even make international calls.

Southern Cross Cable Network's Veverka said limited satellite connections exist between Tonga and other parts of the world but he did not know if they might be affected by power outages.

People look at a damaged boat in a marina at Tutukaka, New Zealand, after waves from a volcano eruption swept into the marina

A car is caught in rising water at Santa Cruz Harbor on Saturday as tsunami flooding strikes low-lying areas

A tsunami has struck Tonga sending terrified locals fleeing for high ground as huge waves crashed over roads and into homes (pictured, tsunami waves begin to overwhelm coastal homes in Tonga on Saturday)

Locals took to social media to share dramatic videos of the surging waves making land and crashing through homes and cars (pictured, still images from video filmed in Tonga and posted to social media on Saturday)