Video has circulated online since December 2021 in posts about Indonesian social media trend

This article is more than one year old.
Published on January 17, 2022 at 10:58
3 min read
By Wasi MIRZA, AFP Pakistan

As a tsunami flooded several Pacific coastlines following a devastating volcanic eruption in Tonga in January 2022, a video was viewed hundreds of thousands of times on social media alongside a claim it shows people being swept away by a tsunami wave. However, the video has been shared in a false context; it has circulated in posts since December 2021 about a group in Indonesia that filmed a stunt for a social media trend.

The video was shared here on Twitter on January 15, 2022.

It has been viewed more than one million times.

The caption reads: "Unexpected #Tsunami #HungaTongaHungaHaapai #Tsunami #Tonga #Earthquake."

The 45-second video appears to show a man punching a tree next to a stretch of open water, before being hit by a large wave along with several other people.

Screenshot of the misleading post. Taken on January 17, 2022. ( AFP / )

An underwater eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano in Tonga on January 15 triggered a tsunami that flooded Pacific coastlines from Japan to the United States, AFP reported.

The video was shared alongside a similar claim here, here, here and here on Facebook; on Twitter here, here, here and here; and on TikTok here, here, here and here.

It was also shared here on Facebook by Dominican Republic TV station, Telenoticias 11 and here by Enrique Santos, a radio host in the US.

However, the video has been shared in a false context.

A reverse image search found a longer version of the video posted here on YouTube on December 6, 2021.

From the 50-second mark, the same man can be seen speaking to the camera in Indonesian before beginning to punch a nearby tree.

He says he wants to emulate a viral stunt by an Indonesian man in North Sumatra province, who filmed himself punching a tree until the trunk snapped in half.

"I will punch the tree like [the guy] from [that viral video]...please watch my video so that we can collaborate together at Ombak Bono," he says in Indonesian-language.

"Ombak Bono" is a tidal bore in the Riau province's Kampar river.

The YouTube channel has constantly shared videos of the same man presenting from the same location, as seen here and here.

Below is a screenshot comparison of the footage in the false posts (L) and the original video (R):

Screenshot comparison. Taken on January 17, 2022 ( AFP / )

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