A man who was swept out to sea by the Tongan tsunami has been hailed a real life Aquaman.
Three people died in the devastating volcanic eruption and tsunami that hit Tonga on Saturday.
Survivor Lisala Folau relived his ordeal in an interview with radio station Broadcom.
Lisala lives in Atata, an island half-hour boat ride away from Tonga's capital, Nuku'alofa.
The island is occupied by 61 people and lies 50 kilometres from the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano, which erupted triggering huge waves that engulfed the area.
The Daily Star reports how Lisala climbed a tree to miss the first wave after being told about the tsunami by his brother, but a second, larger wave swept him and his family out to sea.
The second wave was higher than six metres, he says.
He said: "It was dark and we could not see each other.
"Very soon I could not hear my niece calling any more, but I could hear my son calling."
Lisala, who has issues with mobility, did not respond to calls as he did not want to to risk the lives of those trying to save him.
He said: "I left everything and try to escape but bear in mind that I am disabled.
"I can't walk properly, both my legs are not working properly and when I can, I believe a baby can walk faster than I.
"So I just floated, bashed around by the big waves that kept coming. It stayed with my mind if I can cling to a tree or anything and if anything happens and I lose my life, searchers may find me and my family can view my dead body."
Rescue came close when a police boat sped past Lisala who waved a rag to alert rescuers, but it missed him.
He finally reached Tongatapu around 9pm on Sunday where he was able to contact his family, and Lisala said thinking about his family was what kept him swimming.
He said: "So unexpected that I survived after being washed away, floating and surviving the dangers I just faced."
Lisala thanked his family, his church and God for giving him the strength to survive.
His daughter described the time as a "night of hardship" and said she was proud of her father's bravery.
Lisala's heroics went viral among Tongan groups on Facebook and other social media.
"Real life Aquaman," said one post on Facebook, referring to the comic book and film character.
"He's a legend," said another post.
Atata, which is about 8 km northwest of Tonga's capital Nuku'alofa, has been almost entirely
destroyed in the tsunami that hit the islands that make up Tonga.
Tongan naval boats are still surveying the smaller islands and evacuating people to the main islands.
An aircraft carrying humanitarian supplies arrived in the island on Thursday.
One of the owners of the Royal Sunset Island Resort on Atata has also created a fundraiser to go towards repairing the village.
