page_title: Whakaari / White Island
section_title: 2019 eruption
hierarchical_section_title: Whakaari / White Island / Volcanology / 2019 eruption
caption_attribution_description: English: View of the 2019 Whakaari / White Island eruption from Whakatane at 14:20, 9 minutes after the start of the eruption
context_page_description: Whakaari / White Island is an active andesite stratovolcano situated 48 km from the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand, in the Bay of Plenty. The island covers an area of approximately 325 ha, which is only the peak of a much larger submarine volcano.
  The island is New Zealand's most active cone volcano, and has been built up by continuous volcanic activity over the past 150,000 years. The nearest mainland towns are Whakatane and Tauranga. The island has been in a nearly continuous stage of releasing volcanic gas at least since it was sighted by James Cook in 1769. Whakaari erupted continually from December 1975 until September 2000, marking the world's longest historic eruption episode, according to GeoNet, and also in 2012, 2016, and 2019.
  Sulphur was mined on the island until the 1930s. Ten miners were killed in 1914 when part of the crater wall collapsed. The main activities on the island now include guided tours and scientific research. Access to the island is allowed only as a member of a tour run by a registered tour operator.
context_section_description: In November 2019, background activity at Whakaari increased and gas, steam and mud was being ejected from  the crater.
  At 14:11 NZDT on 9 December 2019, Whakaari / White Island erupted. It was reported that there were forty-seven people on the island when the eruption happened. Twenty-one people were killed, including two people who are missing and confirmed dead on 23 January 2020, and a further twenty-five were seriously injured, many critically. The bodies of two victims have not been recovered and may have been lost to the sea. The ongoing seismic and volcanic activity in the area and subsequently heavy rainfall as well as low visibility and toxic gases all hampered recovery efforts.
  Experts identified the event as a phreatic eruption: a release of steam and volcanic gases which caused an explosion, launching rock and ash into the air. Minor ash emissions were observed on 23 and 26 December, but no further eruptions occurred. Visual observations conducted in January showed that lava had been extruded into the vents created by the eruption on 9 December.
caption: View of the 2019 Whakaari / White Island eruption from Whakatane at 14:20, 9 minutes after the start of the eruption
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