White Island volcano eruption: Risky recovery operation begins
A New Zealand military team has landed on the volcanic White Island to recover the bodies of eight people killed in Monday’s eruption, the police announced on Friday morning.
The eight-member NZ Defence Force team has arrived on Whakaari/White Island to airlift the bodies off to the naval ship HMNZS Wellington.
Located about 50 kilometres off the east coast of New Zealand’s North Island, the White Island is still “highly volatile” with 50 to 60 per cent chance of erupting in the next 24 hours, geological agency GNS Science said on Thursday.
“Whakaari/White Island is an active volcano, and the estimated chance of an eruption is increasing every day,” said the agency’s volcanologist Graham Leonard.
“This level of volcanic activity is the highest we’ve seen since the eruption in 2016.”
Six Australians are believed to be among the victims on the island: Karla Matthews and Richard Elzer from Coffs Harbour; Julie and Jessica Richards from Brisbane; Zoe Hosking from Adelaide; and Krystal Browitt from Melbourne.
There were 47 people on the island at the time of eruption. Twenty-four of those were from Australia, nine from the United States, five from New Zealand, four from Germany, two each from China and Britain, and one from Malaysia.
Police said on Thursday two people who were hospitalised from injuries sustained during the eruption had died, bringing the official death toll to eight. Police believe a total of 16 people have died.
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern told ABC Radio National on Friday morning the country’s workplace health and safety regulator WorkSafe was investigating the circumstances around the eruption.
“I’m passing no judgement,” she said. “I need that job to be done properly and [families and the community] deserve to have their questions answered.”