Australia offers assistance to tsunami-hit Tonga after undersea volcano eruption

Australia has pledged to send humanitarian and technical assistance to Tonga in the wake of the tsunami that struck the country after a nearby underwater.

The minister for the Pacific, Zed Seselja, said Australians and officials living in Tonga had all been accounted for, but it was a rapidly unfolding situation.

He said prime minister Scott Morrison had spoken with his New Zealand counterpart Jacinda Ardern earlier on Sunday to put in place a coordinated response.

He said both countries were sending surveillance aircraft to help gather as much information as possible on the situation.

Australia was aiming to send its plane on Monday to reach Tongan airspace by 9am.

Australia was also preparing to provide humanitarian assistance though a flight from Brisbane which should be ready to go on Monday, but again subject to flight conditions and the ability to get on the ground.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or the extent of the damage in Tonga, but online videos showed huge waves in coastal areas, swirling around homes and buildings.

The warning for Queensland, Victoria and Tasmania beaches was lifted late on Sunday morning, but swimmers were urged to take caution.

Land warnings were issued earlier for Norfolk Island and Lord Howe Island, however by 10.30am on Sunday these were downgraded to marine warnings.

Earlier, the NSW premier, Dominic Perrottet, urged people to follow the rules on Sunday, saying the beaches would remain closed until the state received updated information from the BoM.