New Zealand police say no one still alive on island, and more injured people may die

New Zealand police have launched an investigation into the eruption of the White Island volcano, as further details emerged of the scale of the disaster in which at least six people died and a further eight are feared to have perished.

“I would strongly suggest that there is no one that has survived on the island,” the New Zealand police deputy commissioner, John Tims, said in Wellington.

Police said 47 people were on the uninhabited island at the time of the eruption – 24 from Australia, nine from the United States, five from New Zealand, four from Germany, two each from China and the UK and one from Malaysia.

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Jacinda Ardern said reconnaissance flights showed no signs of life on the island, as witnesses detailed the horrific burns suffered by those caught up in Monday’s eruption.

“The scale of this tragedy is devastating,” the prime minister said in parliament. “To those who have lost or are missing family and friends, we share in your grief and sorrow and we are devastated.”

Tims said police would “look into if there was anyone criminally responsible for the deaths and injuries”, but police later clarified that it was not a criminal investigation at this stage.

The confirmed death toll rose to six on Tuesday evening after one of the 31 people being treated for burns died. Twenty-seven of those taken to hospital had sustained greater than 30% body surface burns, said Dr Pete Watson from the Ministry of Health, and more deaths among the injured were expected.

“There’s many who have suffered inhalation injuries, damage to lungs, so they’re requiring airway support. At this stage, that’s the majority of the people who are in the hospitals,” Watson said. Patients had been sent to burns units across the country, which were at capacity, and some may be sent to Australia.

Lisa Dallow, 48, one of the three members of a family from Adelaide feared missing, was found alive in a New Zealand hospital on Tuesday, but her husband Gavin, 53, and 15-year-old daughter Zoe Hosking are still missing.

Police said they had boats stationed 1km off the coast of White Island, but had been unable to send drones to test gas levels and do reconnaissance missions because of persistent, strong winds. Helicopter pilots said they were willing to fly over on body-retrieval missions, but were being hamstrung by red tape and an overly cautious emergency response plan.

Seismic activity had reduced on Tuesday but scientists estimated there was a 50% chance of a smaller or similar-sized eruption in the next 24 hours. Web cameras on the island indicated jets of gas and steam were still being released from the area, said GNS Science, the government’s research organisation.

Ardern praised the efforts of helicopter pilots who flew to the island shortly after the eruption to rescue people who were stranded. She said they had made “an incredibly brave decision under extraordinary, dangerous circumstances in an attempt to get people out”.

Australia’s prime minister, Scott Morrison, said: “This is a very, very hard day for a lot of Australian families whose loved ones have been caught up in this terrible, terrible tragedy.” A forensics team from the Australian federal police was on its way to New Zealand to help identify victims.

Laura Clarke, the UK’s high commissioner to New Zealand, said two British women had been taken to hospital and that her team was providing assistance.

Every year, about 10,000 tourists take boat trips and helicopter tours to view the dramatic landscape of White Island, or Whakaari. Some have questioned whether the privately owned island, which is New Zealand’s most active cone volcano, should have been operating as a tourist destination.

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Raymond Cas, emeritus professor at Melbourne’s Monash University’s school of earth, atmosphere and environment, said it was “a disaster waiting to happen”.

“Having visited it twice, I have always felt that it was too dangerous to allow the daily tour groups that visit the uninhabited island volcano by boat and helicopter,” Cas told the Australian Science Media Centre.

The Buttle family have owned the island for more than 80 years, and a spokesman said they were devastated by the tragic event. “We wish to thank everyone involved in the rescue effort, including the first responders, medical personnel and the locals who helped evacuate people from the island,” Peter Buttle said. “Their efforts have been both courageous and extraordinary.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest White Island tour operators rescue people minutes after the volcano erupted. Photograph: Michael Schade/AFP/Getty

Michael Schade, who was visiting the island with his parents, had stood at the crater 20 minutes before the eruption. He was among a boatload of tourists just off the island who witnessed the disaster. The vessel returned to rescue a crowd of people on the jetty. “Some people had pockets of burns, other people were fine, and others were really rough,” Schade told the Guardian on Monday. “Some were screaming, while others were in silent shock.”

Passengers set up an assembly line to pass water bottles to people with burns, as well as jackets, inhalers and eye drops.

The island previously experienced a short eruption in 2016, in which no one was hurt.

GeoNet – a collaboration between New Zealand’s Earthquake Commission and GNS Science – raised the alert level for White Island in November after noting an increase in volcanic activity. It rose from one to two on a scale where five represents a big eruption.