THE DANGER BENEATH

The deadly dangers of volcanoes were brought home with the eruption of the Whakaari volcano on White Island in New Zealand in December 2019.

The island attracted around 10,000 tourists a year and, despite scientists raising the alert level, there were 47 visitors there at the time, 22 of whom were killed.

“Volcanoes are always going to erupt on this planet,” said Natalie Starkey. “The areas around them tend to be very lush and good for cropgrowing, so populations will live there.

“If the volcano hasn’t erupted for a

human lifetime, people are quick to forget what would happen if it were to blow its top in a big way.

“Scientists are getting really good at forecasting when they might erupt but we can’t be exact and we don’t always get it right. If one doesn’t erupt when we say, people lose trust if they’ve moved for what they see as no good reason.

“And the tourism industry has an important part to play in educating people of the dangers. People need to realise when it isn’t safe. Volcanoes will still cause deaths.”