White Island Volcano Erupts in New Zealand

The volcanic island Whakaari/White Island in New Zealand's northeastern Bay of Plenty region explosively erupted on 9 December 2019 at 14:11 NZDT.[2] There were 47 people on or near the island at the time. Five people are confirmed dead, eight are missing, presumed dead whilst 34 were injured, 7 critically. 

Whakaari/White Island is an active andesite stratovolcano, situated off the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand in the Bay of Plenty. The volcano has erupted many times in recent history, including several times in the 1980s. A major eruption formed a new crater in 2000, and small eruptions occurred in 2012, 2013, and 2016. The volcano had been showing signs of unrest for several weeks before the 2019 eruption. In October 2019, volcanic tremors and sulphur dioxide gas were at their highest levels since 2016, indicating that an eruption was more likely to occur, and on 18 November, the volcano was rated at Volcanic Alert level 2, indicating "moderate to heightened volcanic unrest", due to increased activity.  The island is monitored by GeoNet and GNS Science with three web cameras, one seismograph, and a microphone to detect volcanic explosions. The organisations also make three-monthly visits to test water, gas and soil, and to survey surface deformation. 

Tourists regularly visit the island, primarily through White Island Tours. The organisation posted a statement on their web page before the eruption, which stated: 

Whakaari/White Island is currently on Alert Level 2. This level indicates moderate to heightened volcanic unrest, there is the potential for eruption hazards to occur. White Island Tours operates through the varying alert levels but passengers should be aware that there is always a risk of eruptive activity regardless of the alert level. White Island Tours follows a comprehensive safety plan which determines our activities on the island at the various levels.

— White Island Tours

 The volcano erupted on 9 December 2019 at 14:11 NZDT (01:11 UTC). The ash plume rose to 3.66 kilometres (12,000 ft) into the air. It was initially believed that there were about 100 tourists on or near the island when the eruption took place. Later this figure was revised to 47 people who were on the island when the eruption happened, including 24 Australians. Some of the people on the island at the time of the eruption were passengers on the Ovation of the Seas cruise ship, which had berthed at Tauranga that morning. 

Some visitors were waiting for vessels to take them off the island at the time of the eruption. Tour operators and these vessels rescued about 23 people from the island before it was officially declared unsafe. A passenger on one of the boats stated that his vessel attempted to first out run the smoke and the eruption before many on the vessel noticed a crowd of people on the jetty that needed help. Those that were brought onto the boat were aided by the original passengers who used water bottles, jackets and other clothing, inhalers, and eye drops. Another passenger told reporters that the boat he was on, launched the emergency inflatable to rescue people who had fled off the dock and into the ocean. Paramedics from the New Zealand Coast Guard boarded the boat before it reached the docks in order to tend to those wounded in the eruption.

 At 18:35 on 9 December, press were told there was one confirmed fatality, with more likely to be dead as several were missing, while many were injured, seven critically. It was stated that it was still too dangerous for the emergency services to get onto the island to rescue people as it is covered in ash and volcanic material. Later the same day, officials declared that 47 people were on the island at the moment of the eruption: five were killed, 34 injured and rescued, while eight are missing and presumed dead. A passenger on a rescue boat stated that many of the injured were burnt, as many survivors had worn just T-shirts and shorts for the day. Many of the injured people were initially taken to Whakatane Hospital, where they were triaged and stabilised before being transferred to other hospitals. Whakatane Hospital, Tauranga Hospital, and Waikato Hospital in Hamilton all activated their mass casualty plans. 

On 10 December, the Ministry of Health announced that the 25 people had been transferred to country's four burns units, and all the units were at capacity. In a press conference at about 8:00 pm on 9 December, New Zealand Police stated that five people were confirmed dead, eight more were confirmed missing and presumed dead, and 34 were injured, some of whom were critically hurt.  The 47 people on the island were identified as 24 Australians, nine Americans, five New Zealanders, four Germans, two Chinese, two Britons and a Malaysian. Of the five fatalities, one was a young local man who worked as a guide for White Island Tours, one a Malaysian tourist,  while three others were thought to be Australian tourists.

There have been three subsequent eruptions since the major eruption on 9 December. Directly after the eruption, the Volcanic Alert level for the island was raised to 4, but was decreased by 16:30 on the same day to level 3. A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck near Gisborne at 12:58 on 10 December. Since the incident, the White Island Tours website has been edited to carry information about the emergency situation.

A professor emeritus from Monash University published comments about the disaster through the Australian Science Media Centre, claiming that the incident was "a disaster waiting to happen". He felt that the island was too dangerous to allow the daily tour groups that visited. New Zealand Police launched an investigation into the disaster, in conjunction with WorkSafe New Zealand. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said that "the scale of this tragedy is devastating". On 10 December, Ardern met emergency services personnal who responded to the incident. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison stated that "This is a very, very hard day for many families whose loved ones have been caught up in this terrible, terrible tragedy" and announced that an Australian Federal Police forensic team was sent to New Zealand. The Australian Parliament House also lowered its flags at half-mast.