New Zealand White Island volcano blast: Seven Aussies on NZ police ‘missing’ list
Friends have confirmed the deaths of NSW couple Karla Matthews and Richard Elzer as authorities reveal another Australian has died in hospital.
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Friends have tonight confirmed the deaths of NSW couple Karla Matthews and Richard Elzer as authorities reveal another Australian, Jason Griffiths, has died in hospital.
Two Australians injured in the White Island eruption have been found in hospitals as authorities confirmed the nine tourists listed as missing might never be found.
Seismic activity on the island, known locally as Whakaari, has significantly increased since Monday when it erupted killing six travellers, injuring more than 30 and leaving nine others - seven Australians and two New Zealanders - listed as missing presumed dead.
New Zealand police today released a list of those still considered missing.
They are Adelaide lawyer Gavin Dallow, 53, his stepdaughter Zoe Hosking, 15, Brisbane mother Julie Richards, 47, and her daughter Jessica, 20, Melbourne woman Krystal Browitt, 21, and Coffs Harbour couple Richard Elzer and Karla Mathews, both 32.
The two New Zealanders are tour guides Hayden Marshall-Inman and Tipene Maangi.
This is the latest on those dead, presumed dead and still missing.
• The first of the dead to be identified was Julie Richards, her daughter Jessica, and Gavin Dallow with police confirming his 15-year-old stepdaughter Zoe Hosking is missing presumed dead while mum Lisa Dallow remains in critical condition in hospital;
• Sydney teenager Jesse Langford, 19, was identified as one of those in hospital but the whereabouts of his parents and sister remain unknown;
• Prime Minister Scott Morrison confirmed up to ten injured patients will be transferred to NSW and Victoria for treatment by three Royal Australian Air Force aircraft within the next 24 hours;
• Manukau District Health Board chief medical officer Dr Peter Watson said 1.2 million square centimetres of skin for transplant had been ordered from the US with local surgical teams working 24 hours a day on shift to deal with horrific burns injuries of the eruption victims, one square metre of skin also arrived yesterday from Australia;
• Doctors confirmed the acid from the eruption was multiplying the difficulty to deal with burns and many had burnt throats;
• Of the still 30 patients in seven hospitals, 22 are in critical condition on airway support and Australian police arrived in New Zealand to help in body retrieval and identification yesterday.
New Zealand officials have a “much clearer and almost complete picture” of the condition of all 47 people, including the 24 Australians, caught up in Monday’s volcanic eruption on Whakaari.
In addition to the six confirmed dead, eight are trapped on the island and presumed dead. A further 30 are receiving treatment in hospitals across New Zealand, with about 25 in a critical condition.
The nature of the eruption on the island, also known as Whakaari, caused survivors to ingest ash and volcanic gases, resulting in horrific injuries.
“There are a number of people in hospital who cannot communicate because they have significant burns not only to skin but to internal organs,” Police Minister Stuart Nash told Radio NZ.
“They cannot speak … or communicate.” Chief Coroner Judge Deborah Marshall said six bodies had been flown to Auckland for post-mortem examinations but “ante-mortem” data was also being examined.
“That is information about the person we believe to be deceased gathered before their death,” she said.
‘EVEN HIGHER RISK OF ERUPTION’
Scientists have warned that the changes of another eruption on White Island has increased in the past 24 hours.
The volcano normally has a 0.1 to 0.2 per cent change of eruption. On Tuesday, scientists from GNS Science gave a 30 to 50 per cent chance or another blast.
Director General of Health Ashley Bloomfield said those odds today increased to 40 to 60 per cent.
“In summary, yesterday there was a high risk of an eruption. Today there is an even higher risk of an eruption”.
Authorities have enacted the national multiple complex burn action plan for the first time, which will include the repatriation of injured Australians back home.
The Australian Defence Force has offered to help fly Australians home in the next two days.
NZ Police Deputy Commissioner John Tims defended the decision to delay returning to the island to retrieve the bodies, saying “the environment on the island has changed”.
“We are standing by to go back to that island … as soon as we are confident there are no risks,” he said.
AUSSIE TEEN REPORTEDLY FOUND ALIVE
In what is being called an “extraordinary development,” Sydney teenager Jesse Langford has been found alive after being feared dead in the New Zealand volcano eruption.
The extent of his injuries is unknown.
The 19-year-old from North Sydney was holidaying with his father Anthony, mother Kristine and sister Winona, 17, on the Ovation of the Seas cruise ship when they opted for the White Island volcano excursion.
His parents and sister remain unaccounted for.
It’s understood extended family are on their way to New Zealand to be with Jesse.
FEARS FOR MISSING AUSTRALIANS
Another family from Sydney, a mother and daughter from Brisbane and an Adelaide family are among a long list of the missing and dead with their desperate families unable to locate or make contact with them.
List of other nationalities including from Mexico, Malaysia and China are also there and just where all these people are remains unclear.
The Hollander family from Sydney are also unaccounted for. Martin, 48, his wife Barbara and their two children Matthew and Berend have also been reported missing.
Relatives of the Langford family have confirmed they haven’t heard anything from father Anthony, wife Kristine and 17-year-old Winona since the eruption.
To check the list of names, click here.
MORE VOLCANIC ACTIVITY HAMPERS SEARCH
The complex process of identifying victims and recovering bodies from the New Zealand volcano tragedy on White Island has been made more difficult with news that volcanic tremor has “significantly increased”.
GNS Science says the tremor activity on Whakaari/White Island has been steadily increasing since about 4am this morning.
Volcanic gas pressure also remains high on the island, where steam and mud have been jetting from craters.
The volcanic alert level remains at 3 out of 5 and the aviation code remains at ‘orange’ – indicating an eruption is occurring with little or no ash produced.
Duty volcanologist Craig Miller said the tremors indicate evidence of continued high gas pressures within the volcano.
“The situation remains highly uncertain as to future activity. Eruptions in the next 24 hours are still likely to occur,” he said.
The increased activity is making the formal identification and autopsies for the six victims of the White Island volcano difficult, though Chief Coroner judge Deborah Marshall confirmed that the process will begin today.
Marshall told journalists at a press conference this morning: “I have declared a mass fatality incident, which means that a number of agencies are now working together to resolve this tragedy.
“We will be using the nationally recognised Interpol standards for victim identification. That includes our fellow stakeholders, pathologists, the police, ESR scientists, forensic ontologists and others and they have all gathered together for this purpose”.
Earlier, Police Deputy Commissioner John Tims told the New Zealand Herald that authorities were trying to return bodies to devastated families as quickly as possible, but the identification process was difficult.
“The nature of the injuries that people have suffered is severe and means identifying them is a complex matter,” he said.
“We are working through the process to identify them as quickly as possible, to return those who have died to their loved ones.”
The mayor of Whakatāne said families were “desperate” to bring those still on the volcano home, calling the wait “horrendous”.
“From what I understand, they’re taking a team of experts out to do this work. [The families are] just desperate to get their loved ones back, it’s horrendous,” Mayor Judy Turner said.
COPS GRILLED OVER POSSIBILITY OF SURVIVORS
Bruce Bird, the Acting Commissioner was questioned about the possibility of survivors at the press conference in New Zealand this morning, and whether they should be listening to local operators who believe they can assist with the retrieval process.
“Local operators say they can get out there and retrieve those people. Do you need to listen to the locals who know the island best?” asked News Corp journalist Charles Miranda.
“We have got scientific information that’s at our disposal and we need to assess that information before we make a decision. That is exactly what we’re doing and we will hold onto that,” responded Bird.
Miranda continued with his questioning, saying “there are potentially people who were still alive in that tragedy and police were widely criticised for that. Does it change things, given the fact that the police are absolutely convinced that there are no survivors on the island and you may as well, not add to the risk of life?”
Bird responded by saying: “Following the incident, we know that a local helicopter pilot went back out to the island and spent some considerable time on the island. We know from other witness statements that people made some assessments there and we are pretty satisfied that every person on that island was not alive at the time. You’re correct, we cannot put other people in jeopardy to go out there until we’re absolutely certain that the island is actually safe.”
AUSSIE CRUISE FURY AS SHIP LEAVES PORT
Meanwhile, the ship at the centre of the tragedy, the Ovation of the Seas, left Tauranga shortly before 7am (5.30am AEDT) for the rest of its shortened cruise of New Zealand.
It comes as despair over the tragedy quickly turned to anger as families of victims and safety experts ask why they were allowed to go there.
New Zealand Police walked back an announcement that they had launched a criminal investigation into the incident, saying it was simply an investigation.
A report published by the Royal Geographical Society warned of the dangers of “volcano tourism”.
Volcano experts had upgraded the danger warning weeks before the White Island volcano erupted spewing boiling gas and ash 12,000 metres into the air as tourists walked on the floor of the crater.
“I’m just livid,” mother Barbara Barham said after receiving a call from her daughter Lauren Urey telling her she and newlywed husband Matthew had been rescued with burns.
“There’s been warnings about it … my son-in-law never would have booked the excursion if he knew there was any chance of them being injured,” she said.
Twenty-four-year-old Ovation of the Seas passenger Venessa Lugo, from Newcastle, said information about the White Island day tour was provided before the cruise, in printed sheets on board, and through a Royal Caribbean app that cruisers were encouraged to download.
“In those sheets we weren’t advised of any warnings of anything going off,” she said.
“It did ask about pre-existing medical conditions, and it was classified as strenuous activity because you would be in a gas mask, but it definitely didn’t specify the possibility of (the volcano) going off.”
Screen shots from the section of the Royal Caribbean app spruiking the tour reveal that passengers were urged to consider their physical fitness before choosing the expedition, and were told it was not appropriate for people with limited mobility.
Asked whether passengers were informed that White Island’s hazard level had been raised from level one to level two, Ms Lugo said no.
“None of that information was sent through to us,” she said.
Royal Caribbean International were unable to comment after being contacted by News Corp about the claims.
Geological hazard information agency GeoNet (GNS) had issued multiple warnings of “volcanic unrest” as far back as late October.
“Moderate volcanic unrest continues at Whakaari/White Island, with substantial gas, steam and mud bursts observed at the vent located at the back of the crater lake,” it reported last Tuesday.
It was the agency’s crater cameras that captured the tourists, wearing just plastic yellow hard hats, walking across the base of the volcano moments before it instantaneously erupted.
White Island Tours’ chairman Paul Quinn told reporters that the major safety consideration was given to the weather.
“In the normal course of events, we’d actually make that call [not to travel] the night before, and that principally and invariably is around the weather,” Mr Quinn said.
He said the company, which has exclusive access to the privately owned island, said the “steer” on volcanic activity came from GNS.
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“They send us reports as to what the activity levels are and if in fact it is deemed safe – which is a level two which it was yesterday – the next step is the weather and then we make our choices from there.”
He said level two was considered a safe degree to operate. Immediately after the eruption the danger level was increased to four.
It was also revealed that the island had been installed with a blast shelter three years ago. But it was unclear if any of the tourists had managed to seek shelter in the former shipping container.
The Whakaari Trust, which owns the island and is managed by Whakaari Management Limited, have released a statement following the tragedy and said they offer their “heartfelt sympathies” to those “affected by the eruption”.
Speaking from Whakatāne, Trust spokesman Peter Buttle says his family, which includes his two brothers Andrew and James, have owned the island for over 80 years and are devastated by the tragic event.
“We are all shocked by what has occurred on Whakaari yesterday and our thoughts are with everyone affected by this tragedy,” said Mr Buttle.
“We wish to thank everyone involved in the rescue effort, including the first responders, medical personnel and the locals who helped evacuate people from the island. Their efforts have been both courageous and extraordinary.”
But Emeritus Professor Ray Cas from the School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment at Monash University said White Island was “a disaster waiting to happen for many years”.
“Having visited it twice, I have always felt that it was too dangerous to allow the daily tour groups that visit the uninhabited island volcano by boat and helicopter,” he said.
University of Sydney geophysics professor Dietmar Muller also questioned why people were walking through the volcano at all after visiting it with his geologist wife last year.
“When we visited, we were all told that walking into the crater was off limits, so I am unsure why people were allowed to enter the crater recently, especially given that there were some warning signs,” he said.
“Even though eruptions are difficult to predict, on 3 December GeoNet reported that ‘unrest’ at White Island had occurred for a week. Explosive gas-and-steam-driven fountains were observed and mud and debris were ejected 20-30 m above the vent.
“Therefore it looks like there were precursors, but they were clearly not interpreted as a certain sign of a looming eruption, likely because this sort of activity on White Island is not uncommon,” Prof Muller said.
‘DREADFUL DECISION TO MAKE’
Relatives injured in the White Island eruption are split between different hospitals, leaving their loved ones with incredibly difficult choices, Tauranga’s mayor says.
Mayor Tenby Powell spent yesterday on the bridge of Ovation of the Seas in the Port of Tauranga.
He was part of a local operations team working with the cruise ship’s captain and crew to co-ordinate “wraparound support” for the families of the 38 people from the ship who were on or near the island during Monday’s eruption.
Powell said they were working to map out which hospitals each injured person was in, and get that information to loved ones on the ship.
“There are certain family members who were split between different hospitals, which created real challenges.
“People had to make a decision as to where they would go and who they would be with, which is a dreadful bloody decision to make.”
Powell understood the parents of twins, aged about six, were injured in the eruption but each parent had been taken to a different hospital.
The twins and their sibling, a boy aged around 12, were being cared for by their grandmother, who Powell said was “very distraught” and struggling with the lack of information from authorities, as well as the decision about where to go next.
TOUR GUIDE WAS FIRST VICTIM NAMED
Hayden Marshall-Inman’s brother wrote that the local tour guide had died “doing the one thing he loved.”
Mark Inman’s social media post was flooded with tributes, well-wishes and memories of Marshall-Inman, who has been celebrated as “a top man who left an impact on the world.”
“Tom Storey and Mark Law, they flew out on their own accord – and thank god they did. They pulled some people back that may not have survived. Heroes,” Mr Inman said.
“They found my brother lying down, they lifted him up and moved him to a safe spot and carried on saving the ones that needed saving. They did a fantastic job. Unsung heroes.”
Unfortunately, Hayden wasn’t one of the survivors. His body now lies on a rise beside a stream.
Marshall-Inman was a guide for Whakatane-based White Island Tours and was leading a tour group on a seven-hour day trip from a cruise ship to the volcano when it erupted.
A local supermarket worker described Marshall-Inman’s generous spirit.
“Whenever he came in and made a purchase, he always gave us $NZ5 to pay towards the next person’s groceries,” Julie Lockett said. “He had the kindest heart, it was never about him; he definitely created a ripple effect of happiness to others,” she added.
POLICE INVESTIGATION LAUNCHED
New Zealand police have launched an investigation into the tragedy of the White Island eruption with 47 tourists taken to the New Zealand North Island atoll despite warnings just two weeks ago of fresh volatility and danger.
“I can confirm now that we will commence a criminal investigation into the circumstances of the death and injuries on White Island,” deputy police commissioner John Tims said.
Two hours later police backed down on saying it was just an investigation on behalf of the coroner.
Mr Tims declined to specify the subject of the investigation or what charges could be laid, saying only that the terms of reference were still being developed.
But the investigation would run parallel to a probe conducted by the workplace watchdog Work Safety New Zealand.
Such was the horrific injuries of the dead and wounded, eight hospitals were operating to capacity with burns specialists and witnesses likening injuries to those severe blisterings from toxic gas and ash as akin to Chernobyl.
The news came as police confirmed an aerial drone and land-based search had failed to find any sign of life on the still smouldering volcano and a recovery mission of bodies would only take place if and when it was ever deemed safe.
Travel operator White Island Tours, which took cruise passengers and others to the volcano island, said it took safety responsibilities extremely seriously.
Operator chairman Paul Quinn agreed it was known it was at Level 2, “moderate to heightened volcanic unrest”.
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern singled out “our Australian family” for sympathy.
“The scale of this tragedy is devastating,” she told parliament. “To those who have lost or are missing family and friends, we share in your grief and sorrow and we are devastated.”
Of the police probe she added: “We know, too, there will be bigger questions in relation to this event. These questions must be asked and they must be answered.”
The New Zealand Government’s chief medical officer Peter Watson said all had to be prepared for the death toll to rise with at least 27 of the injured suffering greater than 71 per cent body surface burns and others inhalation airways burns.
He said some of the Australian patients who are well enough to travel would likely be transferred to Australian hospitals where they can be closer to family.
Since the Monday 2pm eruption on White Island, also known by its Maori name Whakaari, rescuers have been unable to access the island with GNS Science, New Zealand’s geoscience agency, warning there was now a 50/50 chance of another eruption in the coming 24 hours, as the volcano vent continued to emit “steam and mud jetting”.
Russell Clark, an intensive care paramedic worker, said the scene looked like the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, “just blanketed in ash”.
“It was quite an overwhelming feeling. There was a helicopter on the island that had obviously been there at the time, with its rotor blades off it,” Mr Clark said.
“I can only imagine what it was like for the people there at the time — they had nowhere to go.”
Originally published as New Zealand White Island volcano blast: Seven Aussies on NZ police ‘missing’ list
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