- The death toll has risen to eight — after two people succumbed to their injuries — and eight people remain missing, after one of New Zealand's most active volcanoes erupted on Monday.
- New Zealand's geological monitoring agency, GeoNet, said the eruption began at around 2:11 p.m. local time on Whakaari, also known as White Island, a popular tourist spot which features an active volcano.
- The death toll is expected to rise as police said that "no signs of life have been seen at any point" by helicopters and rescue aircrafts flying over the island.
- GNS Science, New Zealand's geoscience agency, said on Wednesday that the volcanic tremor has "significantly increased overnight," leaving open the "likely" possibility that another eruption could occur within the next 24 hours.
- Authorities say they are going to try to retrieve bodies on Friday. Previously, conditions have been deemed too unsafe.
- Police released the nationalities of 47 people who were on the island when the volcano erupted, which included 24 Australians, two Chinese nationals, four Germans, one Malaysian national, five New Zealanders, two people from the UK, and nine people from the US.
- Police say it is too early to confirm whether there will also be a criminal investigation on the circumstances which allowed large numbers of people to visit the volcano before its eruption.
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Authorities confirmed that the death toll has risen to eight — after two people succumbed to their injuries in the hospital — after one of New Zealand's most active volcanoes erupted on Monday.
Eight people remain missing. Though, the death toll is expected rise as police said that "no signs of life have been seen at any point" by helicopters and rescue aircrafts flying over the Island.
The eruption occurred at Whakaari, also known as White Island, a popular tourist spot located about 50 kilometers (30 miles) from the east coast of country's North Island.
According to New Zealand's geological monitoring agency, GeoNet, the unexpected eruption began at around 2:11 p.m. local time on Monday and sent ash plumes 12,000 feet into the air.
Police are planning on trying to retrieve bodies from Whakaari on Friday, police Deputy Commissioner John Tims said in a Thursday statement.
Previously, conditions had been deemed unsafe. GNS Science, New Zealand's geoscience agency, said on Wednesday that the volcanic tremor has "significantly increased overnight," leaving open the "likely" possibility that another eruption could occur within the next 24 hours.
The agency added that the volcano is producing "vigorous steaming and localized mud jetting in several of the craters created by the eruption," which they are interpreting as signs of continued high gas pressures within the volcano.
Police say they expected more bodies to be discovered once the rescue operation was able to be carried out.
"The nature of the injuries that people have suffered is severe and means identifying them is a complex matter," police said.
More than 20 people are still being treated for burns in several hospitals around New Zealand. Around 186,000 square inches of skin are being brought into New Zealand to treat the burn victims.
"We understand people's desire to recover their loved ones and we are working around the clock to get onto the island so we can recover them as soon as possible," police said Tuesday. "Based on the effects of the eruption on the bodies, this recovery will need to be handled with expert skill and care."
Police say they are still working to confirm the identities of those who have died and who are injured. Police on Tuesday released the nationalities of 47 people who were on the island when the volcano erupted, which included 24 Australians, two Chinese nationals, four Germans, one Malaysian national, five New Zealanders, two people from the UK, and nine people from the US.
The two people who died in the hospital were identified as brothers Berend Hollander, 16, and Matthew Hollander, 13. Their school Knox Grammar School, located in Sydney confirmed their deaths, The Guardian reported. The brothers were born in the US and moved from Chicago to Australia six years ago, ABC News reported. Their parents are still missing.
Police added that it was too early to confirm whether there will also be a criminal investigation on the circumstances which allowed large numbers of people to visit the volcano before its eruption.
Whakaari/White Island is erupting. More information soon. pic.twitter.com/B5m4BSa4bt
— GeoNet (@geonet) December 9, 2019
Prime Minister Jacinda Arden said that about 100 people were believed to have been on the island when the volcano erupted, according to the New Zealand Herald.
It is not clear how many of these estimated 100 people were rescued prior to the helicopters being sent over the Island.
Prime Minister Arden expressed her condolences for those affected at a cabinet meeting on Monday afternoon.
"All our thoughts are with those affected at this stage," Ardern said.
New Zealand's National Emergency Management Agency said on Monday that the immediate vicinity of the volcano remains hazardous.
A no-fly zone has been established above the island.
According to GNS Science, White Island has been New Zealand's most continuously active volcano for the last 40 years.
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