Ahead of the largest ever WorkSafe investigation making it to trial this week, The Detail looks back on the aftermath of the devastating Whakaari eruption.
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View of Whakaari / White Island from a monitoring flight on 31 August, 2022. Photo: GNS
The trial of six parties over the Whakaari White Island eruption begins this week, another brutal reminder of the catastrophic day in December 2019.
Once again, the focus of international and local media turns onto the Bay of Plenty town of Whakatāne, and brings back terrible memories of the massive explosion that ultimately killed 22 people.
Everyone in the small town was linked to the tragedy, from the whānau of victims, to the first responders and the medical teams at hospital, council and emergency workers, business owners affected by the initial tourism decline and the iwi, Ngāti Awa.
It is embedded into the town's history, says Judy Turner who was the mayor at the time, and the trial marks an important step in the recovery.
It also highlights the difficult and sensitive connections some local people have with the disaster.
"Many of the people who are held to account, were in that moment, absolutely heroic. There's no other way to describe it," says Turner, referring to some of those who were charged, including the helicopter operators.
Judy Turner speaks to media as Mayor of Whakatāne on the day of the Whakaari eruption in 2019. Photo: RNZ / Dom Thomas
Several parties that were charged have since pleaded guilty, including on Friday three commercial helicopter tour operators; White Island Tours, and GNS Science. That means they will no longer go to trial over health and safety failings in the lead up to the deadly eruption and will be sentenced in coming weeks.
The six defendants still facing the judge alone trial include the island's owners, the Buttle family, on charges filed by WorkSafe. It was the largest investigation ever undertaken by the government agency, involving 40 percent of its inspectors.
Such is the interest from the public and media that it is being held in the large Environment Court in Auckland. Whakatāne people will be able to watch a livestream at a local conference centre. RNZ journalist Amy Williams is covering the trial, which is set down for 16 weeks and says some of the defendants who pleaded guilty will now be giving evidence.
Among the members of the public at the Auckland hearing is Joe Harawira, the former chair of the Ngāti Awa Trust, who played a lead role in the first days and weeks. The iwi's Mataatua Marae in the township became the base for whānau of the victims and community leaders, "to grieve, to deal with the tragedy, to understand what had happened under the umbrella of what we call manaaki tāngata".
Turner credits the iwi and those at the marae for "getting us through".
"They opened their marae down at The Heads every morning. And people flocked there, it was just comforting," she says.
Harawira says the disaster has brought the Whakatāne community closer and iwi is now at the decision-making table.
"It's probably the first time we have felt that we have been a part of the whole process as the iwi. Change is slow but I see the coming together of a community."
Find out more about what to expect from the trial by listening to the full episode.
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