Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force transport ship Osumi departed for Tonga on Monday to provide aid to the southern Pacific nation recently ravaged by an undersea volcanic eruption and subsequent tsunami.
The vessel sailed from an MSDF base in Kure, Hiroshima Prefecture, carrying relief goods including 60 tons of drinking water, 60 high-pressure washing machines and 2,000 plastic storage tanks. Shovels and carts for removing volcanic ash also figure among the relief items.
