White Island volcano eruption: Eerie photos of recovery operation

Pictures have emerged of the morbid operation to White Island to recover the bodies of those who died in the volcanic eruption.

A total of six bodies have now been removed from White Island, with two bodies still remaining.

It follows days of growing frustration from grieving families at delays in emergency services returning to the island to collect their loved ones.

Twenty four Australians were on the island at the time of the eruption and 12 were due to have been evacuated back to Australia over the next 24 hours.

Eight Australians have been confirmed by police as being killed in the disaster, and family members have spoken of 12 Australians presumed dead. 

Updates

5:51 pm December 13, 2019 Highlight

Ardern to answer difficult questions

Jacinda Ardern has pledged to answer the many and difficult questions posed by Monday’s deadly volcano eruption – just not yet.

The New Zealand prime minister has asked for the sharper, more challenging questions to wait as families – including many Australians – grieve for killed and injured people hurt in Monday’s disaster.

After meeting with distraught families and visiting defence force operations, Ardern said in Whakatane on Friday afternoon it was essential that people “respect the phase we’re in now”.

“Families have only just had their loved ones come back,” she said.

“We hear and absolutely agree that there are questions that have been asked and they must be answered and they will be.”

Picture: Mark Baker/AP

Chief among the questions is whether tourists should have been on Whakaari, New Zealand’s most active volcano, during a level two alert.

The tours took place in the context of 30 years of visits to White Island, and in the broader scope of New Zealand’s adventure tourism industry. The practices of White Island Tours will come under the microscope, including their understanding of the risks posed and whether they passed those on to the people in their care.

There will also be a focus on how those answers are sought.

New Zealand police initially announced a criminal investigation into the incident – which has officially killed eight people, with eight others that were trapped on the island set to be added to the grim tally – only to retract it hours later.

Picture: Lillani Hopkins/AFP

Ardern said at least two investigations would still take place. “Worksafe is the agency in New Zealand that will hold responsibility for that. And when you have significant loss of life, a coronial inquest as well,” she said.

She deferred a question on whether she would announce a Royal Commission or other independent probe, saying as a starting point she wanted to know the scope of Worksafe’s work first.

“People want their questions answered,” she said.

“They won’t dwell on how it’s answered so long as its done in a way that they have trust and faith in – and they do get those answers.”

-AAP

4:30 pm December 13, 2019 Highlight

Update on Australian patients

Eight NSW residents who were injured in the White Island eruption are being treated at two Sydney Hospitals after being transported home from New Zealand.

Two patients at Concord Hospital are in a critical condition and one is in a stable condition.

The family of two other patients being treated there have requested privacy.

One person being treated at Royal North Shore Hospital is in a critical condition and two other patients are in a stable condition.

Two more patients are expected to arrive back in Australia later this evening and will be treated at Royal North Shore.

4:02 pm December 13, 2019 Highlight

Search for bodies may to restart tomorrow

The teams searching for the two bodies that are believed to still be on the island may have to recommence the recovery mission tomorrow.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said there was a "huge determination" to find those that are still missing.

"There is a huge determination from those that I visited to make sure that they do everything they can to locate those that haven't been brought back," she said during a press conference.

"So there will be an ongoing operation and that's something that we're

going to leave those expert teams, those expert dive teams, to undertake."

New Zealand Police Commissioner, Mike Bush, said the dive team haven't found the body that is believed to be in the water.

"The New Zealand police dive team supported by the Defence Force personnel deployed today, they haven't found anybody as yet," he said.

"And they are working together to plan for tomorrow. They will redeploy and it will be the New Zealand police dive team and some of the navy dive team as well."

2:27 pm December 13, 2019 Highlight

Pictures from the recovery operation

Images have emerged from the recovery operation that took place today on White Island.

The New Zealand Defence Force shared photos of their team and the New Zealand Police carrying out the operation on the island.

The pictures show the crew dressed in protective yellow suits arriving by boat and searching the area.

Six bodies were recovered from this island this morning and a diving squad is now searching for a seventh body.

A surveillance team is also expected to renew efforts to find the eighth and final body that police believe were trapped on the island that authorities believe were trapped on the island after the eruption.

11:52 am December 13, 2019 Highlight

Two people still missing on White Island

A dive team will be deployed to search for the two bodies still missing on White Island.

Police Commissioner Mike Bush said the recovery of the six bodies "went to plan", noting "the environment was unpredictable, challenging and the staff involved showed absolute courage in order to ensure that those six people were returned to their loved ones.

"Unfortunately, there remain two people that we need to find so we can also return them."

"It's not over yet," he added.

As well as the dive team, this afternoon will see an aerial search of the island conducted to see if the two remaining bodies can be identified.

Colonel Ryan Mckinstry from New Zealand's Defence Force said it's believed that one of the missing bodies is in the water, but the second has not been accounted for. He said the second body could still be on the island or in the water.

The weather is impeding the recovery process, with Colonel Mckinstry saying “the conditions were challenging from the point of departure this morning".

GNS Science said earlier there was a 6% chance in any three hour period that the volcano would erupt.

10:33 am December 13, 2019 Highlight

Six bodies 'expected' to be Australians

Foreign Minister Marise Payne has confirmed 11 Australians have been transferred to hospitals in Sydney and Melbourne, with one more Australian expected to be transferred in coming days.

She said the six bodies transferred earlier today are "expected" to all be Australian, but noted it was difficult to say in advance of the formal process.

If correct, this means the two bodies still on the island belong to Kiwi tour guides Hayden Marshall-Inman and Tipene Maangi.

Ms Payne said New Zealand authorities will return to retrieve the two remaining bodies on White Island as soon as it is safe to do so.

"Due to the circumstances, limitations of equipment and the need to complete the operation within a particular period of time, the New Zeala d authorities have indicated they will return as soon as it is possible to do so to endeavour to retrieve others who remain on the island," she said.

She said the Australian victims have "very severe injuries" which require "very sophisticated care and support", but would not provide further details.

Tipene Maangi's father has spent most of the morning at the cordon at the Whakatane boat ramp.

He told Radio New Zealand he didn't want to be anywhere else today, as the shoreline is where he feels closest to his son.

He has surrounded himself with friends and has his phone close for updates, he said.

Yesterday The New Zealand Herald reported that – in addition to the six bodies that have since been removed from the island – a seventh had been seen in the water and an eighth was unaccounted for.

10:03 am December 13, 2019 Highlight

White Island volcano eruption victims named

Four days on from the White Island eruption disaster, as a team of elite New Zealand soldiers land on the volatile volcano, some loved ones still face the agonising wait of learning where their family is.

Despite conflicting reports, Prime Minister Scott Morrison confirmed yesterday 24 Aussies and four permanent residents had been caught up in the volcanic eruption.

There were 47 people on the volcano when it erupted, meaning more than half the people involved in the tragedy were Australian.

MORE: Entire family killed by eruption

As of late last night, nine Aussies have been confirmed dead by police, however Facebook posts from heartbroken family members – yet to receive any word from hospitals – takes the presumed number of dead Australians to 12.

Three more Aussies, believed to still be on the island, are also presumed dead, taking the total number to 15.

Picture: The Hollander family. Supplied/ABC News Chicago

Eight people had to be left on the island on Tuesday as people rushed to get away from the falling clouds of ash.

Eight Australians have arrived home and are in hospitals receiving world-class burns treatment. Two more will be medevaced home before the week ends.

Of the 12, 10 are NSW residents. The remaining two have been flown to Melbourne.

Under tremendous pressure from local families and despite the risk of another eruption, New Zealand emergency workers are attempting the dangerous retrieval of eight bodies from the island this morning.

Using drones, the military knows the location of six bodies. The plan is to immediately recover the six and search for the other two, then transport them to military frigate HMNZS Wellington anchored off the coast.

9:22 am December 13, 2019 Highlight

Ardern: 'We just want to bring everyone home'

New Zealand leader Jacinda Ardern has provided an update on the White Island recovery mission, saying the goal is to "bring everyone home".

“We are in the middle of the operation and have had defence force personnel on the island since approximately 7.20am," she told ABC radio this morning.

"The role is to get those who have perished on the island and have them returned … we just want to bring everyone home.

“My hope is that it won’t be too much longer. The desire is to do the job properly … we are dealing with people’s loved ones.”

She acknowledged rescue officials have equipment to be on the island for "several hours", but said she hopes it won't be too much longer.

Speaking of the Australian victims, she said "as of today, we should be getting close to having almost every Australian victim home and in Australia's care".

8:38 am December 13, 2019 Highlight

Six bodies prepared for recovery

Six bodies have been prepared for air-lifting off White Island.

The process to transport them to HMNZS Wellington by helicopter has begun, said Deputy Police Commissioner John Tims.

At this stage, it's not clear whether officials will be able to find and recover the remaining two bodies.

Picture: David Rowland/AAP

The brother of Hayden Marshall-Inman, a White Island tour guide who is presumed dead after he went back to help others in the eruption aftermath, said it feels "fantastic" to have the recovery mission underway.

"It's almost like a relief now it's happening. It's going to allow us to grieve and send our loved ones off in the manner they deserve," he told The New Zealand Herald.

8:26 am December 13, 2019 Highlight

Recovery expected to take two more hours

New Zealand officials have released a new statement saying they expect recovery operations to continue for a couple more hours.

"The operation to recover the bodies from Whakaari / White Island is progressing and the team is well advanced with the recovery of the bodies," said Deputy Police Commissioner John Tims.

"We expect the recovery operation to continue for another couple of hours.

"Conditions on the island remain favourable."