The management company of White Island, known as Whakaari, where a volcano eruption resulted in the deaths of 22 individuals, mostly tourists, in 2019, was found guilty of breaking health and safety laws in a New Zealand court on Tuesday.
Following the eruption, which took place on White Island, the workplace regulator pressed charges against 13 parties in November 2020. Six of them, including the operators of helicopter and boat tours, pleaded guilty. The charges against the other parties, except for the management company, were dismissed.
Whakaari Management Ltd. (WML), the company responsible for managing the island on behalf of the owners, but not for conducting the tours, was found guilty of one health and safety charge by District Court Judge Evangelos Thomas, while a second charge was dismissed.
Judge Thomas stated that WML controlled and managed the volcano as a workplace and thus should have sought necessary expertise in volcanology and health and safety to assess the risks involved in the tours.
“Ensuring it met its duty was a step that WML should have reasonably taken,” added Thomas, who further emphasized that the failure to do so constituted a “major failure.”
Whakaari Management Ltd and the other entities, excluding Inflight Charters, which had already been sentenced, can expect to be sentenced next year. If convicted, they face a maximum fine of NZ$1.5 million ($873,600).
At the time of publication, lawyers representing Whakaari Management Ltd did not provide any comment in response to the verdict.
Located around 50 km (31 miles) offshore from the town of Whakatane on the east coast of North Island, White Island is an active volcano that used to welcome visitors despite the occasional eruptions.
The victims of the eruption included tourists from various countries including Australia, the U.S., and Malaysia. With 47 individuals on the island at the time of the eruption, many suffered severe burns from the scorching gas and ash.
As a result of the incident, tourists are now prohibited from visiting White Island.
($1 = 1.7170 New Zealand dollars)
(Reporting by Lucy Craymer; Editing by Michael Perry)
