Why were people on White Island volcano when it erupted?
Monday, 9 December 2019
About 50 people were on White Island when it erupted on Monday afternoon.
At least five people are dead, 18 injured and a 'double digit' number are thought to remain on the island, but their condition is not clear.
GeoNet raised the Volcanic Alert Level to level two on November 18, indicating heightened volcanic unrest and potential for eruption hazards.
Less than a week ago, GeoNet said observations indicated the volcano may have been entering a period when eruptive activity was higher than normal. So why were tourists still allowed on the island?
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GeoNet volcanologist Brad Scott said it was up to tour operators to monitor the situation and decide whether to continue operating.
An estimated 10,000 people visit the privately-owned site each year, which is New Zealand's most active volcano.
Access to the island has been controlled through permits since 1995.
White Island Tours, which runs daily boat and walking tours of the volcano, would not comment on the conditions under which they would cancel tours.
According to Ship Tracker, White Island Tours vessel Te Puia Whakaari was out at the island at the time. It can seat 49 people.
White Island Tours publishes the volcanic alert level on its website and says tours 'operate through varying alert levels'. Tours costs $229 per adult.
'Passengers should be aware that there is always a risk of eruptive activity regardless of the alert level,' it says.
It says tours follow a 'comprehensive safety plan' which determines activities on the island at the various alert levels.
After the alert level was raised from one to two in July, White Island Tours said it would continue to operate, and would roster additional staff to go ahead of tour groups to assess conditions.
The island is 49km off the coast of Whakātane. Getting there takes 80 minutes by boat, or 20 minutes by helicopter.
A helicopter from Volcanic Air was also on the island at the time of the eruption. The Rotorua company said the pilot and four passengers were unharmed and returned to the mainland via boat.
People are only allowed to land on White Island as part of a tour. Tour companies provide visitors with hard hats and gas masks to protect against the sulphurous steam and fully-enclosed shoes are compulsory.
A trip to the island will typically take in a one-hour tour of the inner crater, with its bright-green lake, bubbling pits of mud and roaring steam vents.
Visitors are told to keep to the track to avoid the vents which discharge volcanic gases at temperatures of between 100 and 800 degrees.
'Anybody falling in a vent would be rapidly cooked,' GNS Science says on its website.
Initial reports suggested up to 100 people could have been on the island at the time of the eruption, but this was later revised down.