NBC News, by Denise Chow: The volcano in New Zealand that killed an estimated 14 people when it erupted with little warning is notoriously difficult to predict, making it one of the most dangerous in the world, according to scientists.
The volcano on White Island is New Zealand’s largest and a major tourist attraction. And while some warning signs were reported, scientists familiar with the area say they were not enough to halt public tours.
“It’s not the first time this volcano has behaved like that, where there was an explosion with no warning,” said David Phillips, head of the School of Earth Sciences at the University of Melbourne in Australia. “This time, it was terrible because the explosion happened when people were visiting the crater.”
Beginning several months ago, researchers at GeoNet, an organization founded in 2001 that monitors activity at all of New Zealand’s volcanoes, observed an uptick in activity at White Island. The scientists reported “small, muddy, geyser-like explosions” in the volcano’s active crater, but kept their alert to Level 1, their lowest designation which signals minor volcanic unrest.
On Nov. 18, that warning was raised to Level 2 after GeoNet recorded stronger volcanic tremors at White Island and an increase in toxic sulfur dioxide coming from the volcano. Level 2 is categorized as “moderate to heightened volcanic unrest,” but tour companies typically stick to a business-as-usual approach under this designation, according to Richard Arculus, a volcanologist at the Australian National University.
“With a Level 2, it’s standard practice for tour operators to keep operating,” Arculus said. “There might be more activity like mud or water being thrown out of the crater lake, but tour operators would not cancel tours on a Level 2 alert.”
This is because it’s not unusual to see fluctuating patterns of activity at White Island, according to Phillips.
“It’s one of the most active volcanic systems, and it’s very difficult to predict,” he said. “This sort of activity waxes and wanes all the time, and alert levels go from 1 to 2, and in most cases nothing happens.”
When the volcano erupted [December 9th], 47 tourists were visiting White Island, which is located roughly 30 miles off the coast of New Zealand’s North Island.
Prophetic Link:
“The Lord is teaching men that there are limits to His forbearance. In fires, in floods, in earthquakes, in the fury of the great deep, in calamities by sea and by land, the warning is given that God’s Spirit will not always strive with men.” Last Day Events, page 26.