NZ White Island Volcanoe Eruption - Helicopter Rescue

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TheGreenGoblin
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Re: NZ White Island Volcanoe Eruption - Helicopter Rescue

#21 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Thu Dec 12, 2019 2:00 am

Police mull a "rushed" body retrieval.

Deputy commissioner says police are facing increasing pressure from victims’ families to recover bodies from White Island.
New Zealand police have admitted they are “worried” they may never be able to retrieve the bodies of eight tourists on White Island, and the time may be drawing near to enacting a a rushed retrieval, despite the ongoing risks of another eruption.

Mike Clements, the deputy commissioner of national operations, said police were facing increasing pressure from families to retrieve the bodies, and there was a very real risk another eruption could mean they would be lost forever.

Judy Turner, the mayor of Whakatāne, said families were growing “desperate” and frustrated at the wait.

She said: “While we fully appreciate the need for the safety of any recovery team going onto Whakaari / White Island to retrieve our loved ones, we are now living with a growing sense of desperation to bring home those we know are there and those we love.”

The news came as it emerged two more people had died from injuries sustained during the eruption. A total of 16 people are believed to have died, with 14 confirmed deaths of Australian citizens or permanent residents. A New Zealander, tour guide Hayden Marshall-Inman, has also died.

Clements said the emergency response team were locked away in Whakatāne designing a range of scenarios to attempt a retrieval, and had brought two local helicopter pilots on board to help with the mission. Both pilots were instrumental in the rescue of 12 survivors on Monday, and know the location of the bodies.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/ ... ption-risk
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Re: NZ White Island Volcanoe Eruption - Helicopter Rescue

#22 Post by FD2 » Sun Dec 15, 2019 8:25 pm

Lawyers in the USA prick up their ears: https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/indust ... passengers

I think they will have an easy case here.

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Re: NZ White Island Volcanoe Eruption - Helicopter Rescue

#23 Post by Pontius Navigator » Mon Dec 16, 2019 6:24 pm

FD2, I would imagine that almost all passengers will have a case for compensation even though they were not present. Some will be legitimately traumatised but I expect the lawyers can make a case for all passengers.

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Re: NZ White Island Volcanoe Eruption - Helicopter Rescue

#24 Post by FD2 » Mon Dec 16, 2019 7:23 pm

Agree PN - there are several organisations in the loop here from the tourism minister, tour organisations, to the island owners. I'm sure the lawyers will extract money from somewhere and deservedly so, but I wouldn't like to see people not directly affected getting on the bandwagon. That's a hard one, but there will be a majority passengers in the ship who had no intention of visiting the island at all.

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Re: NZ White Island Volcanoe Eruption - Helicopter Rescue

#25 Post by Pontius Navigator » Mon Dec 16, 2019 7:56 pm

FD2, visiting the island true, but consider table companions looking at empty seats. Consider those of a fragile temperament. My sisters in law fall into that category. If you are of more stoic character then you may be practically unmoved.

My point was that regardless of your temperament the lawyers will go for broke.

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Re: NZ White Island Volcanoe Eruption - Helicopter Rescue

#26 Post by FD2 » Mon Dec 16, 2019 8:45 pm

Agree PN - some organisation or company is going to pay out a lot of money.

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Re: NZ White Island Volcanoe Eruption - Helicopter Rescue

#27 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Thu Jan 20, 2022 9:01 am

An article reminding us of this disaster and the awful ongoing consequences of the disaster, and the negligence of the cruise company that is trying to hide behind the small print and its places of dubious registration!

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/worl ... 95642.html
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Re: NZ White Island Volcanoe Eruption - Helicopter Rescue

#28 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Thu Jan 20, 2022 10:03 am

TheGreenGoblin wrote:
Thu Jan 20, 2022 9:01 am
An article reminding us of this disaster and the awful ongoing consequences of the disaster, and the negligence of the cruise company that is trying to hide behind the small print and its places of dubious registration!

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/worl ... 95642.html
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd, one of the largest cruise companies in the world, is registered in the West African country of Liberia and maintains its corporate headquarters in Florida.

After the Browitts filed their lawsuit, Royal Caribbean attempted to get the case shifted to Australia, claiming terms in their ticket agreement meant any disputes could only be tried in the state of New South Wales.

However, a federal court in Australia ruled in June last year the appropriate jurisdiction was Florida, where the company’s headquarters are based.
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Re: NZ White Island Volcanoe Eruption - Helicopter Rescue

#29 Post by FD2 » Thu Jan 20, 2022 7:11 pm

So many companies register their ships in Liberia because it's cheaper but I suspect taking the guilty parties to court there might be problematic.

Royal Caribbean probably issued a formulaic statement after White Island saying something like 'the safety of our passengers has always been our top priority since the time of Noah and the whale' as companies do these days. It will then hire batteries of sharp suited, expensive lawyers who will then do their very best to confuse the issues and take as much time doing so as they possibly can. I remember chatting to a company manager friend after a helicopter accident when he explained how the American manufacturer responsible had done exactly that, despite being guilty as hell and liable for substantial damages.

It will, eventually, be settled but the scarred passengers whose lives have been disrupted forever by the events of that day will be paid some money, but a lot less than they deserve. WRT to the minor players in the events of that day, a lot of them were/are being prosecuted by WorkSafe New Zealand (New Zealand's primary workplace health and safety regulator) for various reasons. Then WorkSafe was itself criticised for its own regulations concerning outings like White Island.

https://www.mbie.govt.nz/business-and-e ... te-island/

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Re: NZ White Island Volcanoe Eruption - Helicopter Rescue

#30 Post by CharlieOneSix » Sat Jul 08, 2023 7:54 pm

From the Aberdeen Press & Journal today:
nzvolcano.jpg
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Re: NZ White Island Volcanoe Eruption - Helicopter Rescue

#31 Post by FD2 » Sat Jul 08, 2023 11:24 pm

I think Worksafe are pursuing any of the companies who should have suspended tourist operations or even had second thoughts after the warning of a probable/possible eruption had been issued two weeks before. The helicopter operators have decided to throw in the towel but I think the other 'entities', like the cruise ship operator, are still in the dock. No doubt lots of dosh will be going to their lawyers as they fight the case. I don't think there is any criticism of the helicopter companies who did their best to rescue tourists after the eruption.

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Re: NZ White Island Volcanoe Eruption - Helicopter Rescue

#32 Post by FD2 » Mon Jul 10, 2023 8:00 pm

https://www.districtcourts.govt.nz/medi ... -disaster/

I suppose that Worksafe had to do something significant after such a case as this drew world attention. They seem to have been very diligent. I wonder how good they are about investigating the H&S policies of companies around the country before disaster strikes.

It's all very well being thorough after the event - maybe that's somehow outside their remit - but no, here are the role and responsibilities of Worksafe on their own website. Did they somehow miss all the companies involved in such a famous tourist attraction as White Island?

https://www.worksafe.govt.nz/about-us/w ... ibilities/

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Re: NZ White Island Volcanoe Eruption - Helicopter Rescue

#33 Post by OneHungLow » Tue Sep 05, 2023 4:18 am

The three brothers who owned Whakaari/White Island at the time of its deadly eruption had the individual charges against them thrown out by a New Zealand judge on Tuesday, two months into their trial.

The sudden eruption in December 2019 came as tour groups were visiting the island volcano. The explosion killed 22 people, 17 of them Australians, and seriously injured 25 others.

Andrew, James and Peter Buttle – who inherited the island and own it through a family trust – were individually charged under New Zealand health and safety law with failing to exercise due diligence as company directors to know and manage White Island’s risk.

FILE PHOTO: An aerial view of the Whakaari, also known as White Island volcano, in New Zealand, December 12, 2019. REUTERS/Jorge Silva/File Photo
White Island volcano: Australian survivor shares pain of leaving family after eruption as trial continues
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A judge-alone trial for the men, their company Whakaari Management Limited, and other tourism firms involved in the Whakaari booking, transport and logistics process, began at the Auckland District Court in July. All have pleaded not guilty.

At the conclusion of seven weeks of evidence against the defendants, lawyers for the Buttles argued last week that the material was insufficient to prove the charges against the men.

Judge Thomas agreed, and dismissed the charges the brothers faced in a ruling on Tuesday.

The company Whakaari Management Limited (WML) – of which the three men were sole directors – remains a defendant in the trial. The men did not apply to have charges dismissed against the firm, which established deals with tour operators to bring visitors to the island.

Deciding whether the men had failed in their duties as directors would have required an assessment of each man’s actions based on the nature of their individual responsibilities and how they were discharged, Judge Thomas told the court.

“There is no evidence in this case of what happened behind the boardroom door at WML,” he said, adding that there was no proof of what the Buttles’ circumstances and responsibilities as directors were, or of what negotiations, discussions or disagreements happened between them.

“Without that evidence, I cannot assess what a reasonable director would have done had they been placed in that director’s shoes,” said Judge Thomas.

Investigators did not ask whether the directors were unified in their decision-making, he added. WorkSafe – New Zealand’s labour inspectorate – could have sought individual information about the men’s actions – such as board meeting minutes – but did not, Judge Thomas said.

It was the third time that lawyers for the three men had sought to have the charges against them dismissed. They argued that the brothers were referred to by WorkSafe as “the Buttles” – rather than individually – and that their company was treated by investigators as a single-director firm.

Two tourism companies that are also defendants in the trial have made applications to have the charges against them dismissed. A decision is expected on Friday.

Lawyers for WML have not yet said whether the company plans to present a defence. The companies face maximum fines of NZ$1.5m if found guilty.

When the criminal charges were laid in 2020, the WorkSafe chief executive Phil Parkes said they were the result of the most extensive and complex investigation ever undertaken by the agency.

The trial opened with claims by prosecutors that the island’s owners had put profits before the safety of tourists on the island. The court heard emotional and graphic accounts by survivors of the eruption, who said they did not know the risks and had not received warnings from their tour operators before they visited Whakaari.

Several other companies involved in facilitating the trip have already admitted to charges against them. They will be sentenced after the current trial.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/ ... ano-owners
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