Whakaari/White Island deaths raise lessons still not learnt

Tuesday, 10 December 2019

EDITORIAL: Before we look at the why we need to get our heads around the what. This was another tragedy that has left people grief-stricken and hurting.

The victims of Monday's eruption on Whakaari/White Island and their families are our primary focus right now. As we wait with heavy hearts for the final human toll, we send our heartfelt condolences to the families of those who have died, and our thoughts to those badly hurt and their loved ones, hoping fervently for positive outcomes.

But that should not stop us looking beyond the tragedy, to the wider themes at play.

A women grieves after placing flowers on a fence at the Whakatane Wharf on Tuesday, following the eruption of White Island. Six people are confirmed dead and eight are missing on the island, presumed dead.

A dissertation by the Auckland University of Technology (AUT) best encapsulates the challenge. While the research acknowledges the strength and importance of the adventure tourism industry to New Zealand, and that 'one cannot manage out all the risks', it highlights the 'somewhat negligent attitude of the operators towards safety measures' and a 'lack of followup by the governing agencies'.

We have been here before.

* Getting close to a volcano is exhilarating, but there will always be risks

A helicopter destroyed by the White Island eruption. Eight people are believed to be missing on the island.

* Why were tours still operating?**

Nine people killed in an overloaded plane taking off from Fox Glacier Aerodrome in 2010; seven claimed by a flash flood during a Mangatepopo canyoning trip in 2008; 11 dead in a hot air balloon accident in Carterton four years later. There have been many others.

After each tragedy, investigations have been launched, extensive reports written and a litany of errors, misjudgments and negligent actions revealed.

Even so soon after this latest calamity, with the ash of an agitated volcano hampering the recovery effort, two things are clear: one cannot manage out all the risks, and New Zealand remains possibly a little too complacent about them.

It's important we don't lose sight of the fact that the attraction of this country for so many tourists is that its natural beauty and inherent risks come at close quarters, without the suffocating bureaucracy of other countries.

But we must balance that with preserving the country's reputation as relatively safe for the growing number of tourists attracted to its beauty and sense of adventure.

At some point, hindsight will no doubt have us shaking our heads that we allowed tourists to wander so close to the crater of an active volcano, especially one with a heightened warning level.

Also, answers will be sought on who was left to make a call on whether daily trips were safe. Did the appropriate government agencies have an input, or was it left to a private business to make that decision? Overseas experts have since revealed surprise and disappointment that such a dangerous site was not accorded enough respect.

A search of websites associated with tours to White Island reveals little information about the genuine danger people face. Certainly not enough to make a good, reasoned decision about whether they are comfortable with the level of risk.

That AUT research also identified a lack of regulation of activities with the 'highest risk and accidents recorded', and neglect of relevant agencies.

This leads us to another, possibly even more worrying, conclusion; one highlighted in previous preventable accidents: there remains a disconnect between regulatory agencies and the businesses and tourism operators, a vacuum where authority and clarity should preside. A crack through which lives will continue to fall.

Another substantial inquiry will no doubt be conducted. Another report written. Whether they properly fix that crack is yet to be seen.