The Tonga tsunami destroyed all the houses on one of its islands, government says

• A tsunami hit Tonga and destroyed communications after an underwater volcano erupted on Saturday.
• The government gave its first update on Tuesday, calling it an "unprecedented disaster."

Tonga's government called the tsunami that hit the country last weekend an "unprecedented disaster" and said it had destroyed all of the houses on one island.

The Tuesday update was the government's first since the disaster downed the nation's internet and phone connections.

An underwater volcano exploded on Saturday, triggering a tsunami and covering large parts of the island nation in ash. The disaster also disrupted communications by the underwater cable that powers them.

In its Tuesday statement, the government said that all of the houses on one of its smaller, more-remote islands had been destroyed, the BBC reported. It also said that only two houses were left on another island, the BBC reported.

Tonga is made up of a series of islands. The BBC did not specify the name of the two islands mentioned in the government update.

The government also said that three people — two locals and a British citizen — died in the disaster, the BBC reported.

Authorities have warned that people need food and clean water, but efforts to bring fresh water and other supplies have been hampered by the amount of ash on the main airport's runway.