1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:02,800 Speaker 1: Right to the FACADI White Island Coronial Inquest. It started 2 00:00:02,840 --> 00:00:05,800 Speaker 1: today with first responders giving evidence about the eruption that 3 00:00:05,880 --> 00:00:08,840 Speaker 1: killed twenty two people and injured twenty five six years ago. 4 00:00:08,880 --> 00:00:11,239 Speaker 1: News Talk ZB journalist Jordan Dunn has been there. 5 00:00:11,320 --> 00:00:13,520 Speaker 2: High Jordan, Hey, hey, hey you going. 6 00:00:13,640 --> 00:00:16,320 Speaker 1: I'm very well, thank you. Now, the emergency responders described 7 00:00:16,360 --> 00:00:19,480 Speaker 1: the event as overwhelming. Were they prepared for what hit them? 8 00:00:20,160 --> 00:00:23,599 Speaker 2: Yeah, well you're right, Well the sounds of it not really. 9 00:00:23,640 --> 00:00:25,919 Speaker 2: They all gave different evidence. So there was Saint John 10 00:00:26,000 --> 00:00:28,640 Speaker 2: who gave evidence, there was the police, and they were 11 00:00:28,680 --> 00:00:31,200 Speaker 2: also Health New Zealand and they all have a picture 12 00:00:31,240 --> 00:00:34,960 Speaker 2: that it was an entirely overwhelming experience. Now, Saint John's 13 00:00:34,960 --> 00:00:38,440 Speaker 2: talks about Fuckatsani Hospital which was not nearly equipped for 14 00:00:38,440 --> 00:00:41,840 Speaker 2: this to happen. In Health New Zealand said that it's 15 00:00:41,960 --> 00:00:45,680 Speaker 2: burn center went through a week's work. So I went 16 00:00:45,720 --> 00:00:47,479 Speaker 2: through a month's work in about a week and a 17 00:00:47,560 --> 00:00:49,879 Speaker 2: half year's working about a quarter of that time. Now, 18 00:00:49,920 --> 00:00:52,960 Speaker 2: police really focused on their statement on the difficulties with 19 00:00:53,000 --> 00:00:57,400 Speaker 2: communication and the cross agency communication at that time. Now 20 00:00:57,440 --> 00:00:59,360 Speaker 2: there was just to get people off the island and 21 00:00:59,360 --> 00:01:01,360 Speaker 2: that was just half the battle. This is what the 22 00:01:01,480 --> 00:01:03,320 Speaker 2: council and Apollot had to say. 23 00:01:03,600 --> 00:01:07,000 Speaker 3: There were issues with resourting. There were simply not enough 24 00:01:07,040 --> 00:01:13,040 Speaker 3: ambulances there. Andre Honor. Will hear a police radio Paul 25 00:01:13,240 --> 00:01:16,400 Speaker 3: saying the botus ten minutes away. We've got one ambulance here. 26 00:01:16,600 --> 00:01:19,480 Speaker 1: We need more, Jordan. One of the things that we 27 00:01:19,520 --> 00:01:21,560 Speaker 1: discussed a lot in the aftermath of the eruption was 28 00:01:21,600 --> 00:01:23,720 Speaker 1: whether the first responder should have gone to the island 29 00:01:23,720 --> 00:01:26,360 Speaker 1: immediate immediately after the eruption, which they didn't do. Has 30 00:01:26,400 --> 00:01:27,240 Speaker 1: this been addressed? 31 00:01:28,160 --> 00:01:29,840 Speaker 2: Yeah, Well, there's been so many issues that they've been 32 00:01:29,840 --> 00:01:32,320 Speaker 2: looking through, and you know, the list is extensive. What 33 00:01:32,360 --> 00:01:33,560 Speaker 2: they're going to be looking at, They're going to be 34 00:01:33,600 --> 00:01:37,120 Speaker 2: looking at how emergency responders did actually respond, and who 35 00:01:37,200 --> 00:01:39,440 Speaker 2: was actually in charge of that emergency response, and who 36 00:01:39,480 --> 00:01:41,280 Speaker 2: was supposed to be centering in it, who was going 37 00:01:41,319 --> 00:01:44,480 Speaker 2: to be focusing that communication. You know, as as you mentioned, 38 00:01:45,720 --> 00:01:49,560 Speaker 2: commercial pilots went and tried to rescue people on the island, 39 00:01:49,720 --> 00:01:53,880 Speaker 2: but official emergency responders did not. Now, Council assisting the 40 00:01:53,920 --> 00:01:57,200 Speaker 2: Cook Coroner, Christine Twyman, she actually laid out this question. 41 00:01:57,640 --> 00:02:01,840 Speaker 4: Council assistant considers it important to stand who had authority 42 00:02:01,880 --> 00:02:05,160 Speaker 4: for and actually made the decision that led to no 43 00:02:05,280 --> 00:02:09,280 Speaker 4: official aircraft landing on Facarti until several hours after the eruption. 44 00:02:10,120 --> 00:02:13,040 Speaker 1: And then we also heard from Detective Sergeant Simon Nolan 45 00:02:13,120 --> 00:02:14,680 Speaker 1: this afternoon. What did he have to say? 46 00:02:15,720 --> 00:02:18,160 Speaker 2: So he's given a bit of a three D diagram 47 00:02:18,200 --> 00:02:20,320 Speaker 2: of for Carti and White Island at the moments before 48 00:02:20,360 --> 00:02:23,520 Speaker 2: leading up to the eruption, and he's used a collation 49 00:02:23,800 --> 00:02:26,960 Speaker 2: of videos and photos of the people actually on the 50 00:02:26,960 --> 00:02:29,639 Speaker 2: island and it's a really eerie thing to watch heither, 51 00:02:29,720 --> 00:02:32,200 Speaker 2: because you're seeing these videos of these people on the 52 00:02:32,240 --> 00:02:35,800 Speaker 2: boat going to the island and they seem excited, you know, 53 00:02:35,800 --> 00:02:38,400 Speaker 2: they're obviously excited to see this this natural one, to 54 00:02:38,520 --> 00:02:41,320 Speaker 2: see this live volcano. But then slowly you see the 55 00:02:41,320 --> 00:02:44,120 Speaker 2: footage of the actual moment that it erupts, and it's 56 00:02:44,240 --> 00:02:48,239 Speaker 2: incredibly confronting. You see this, what was this little white 57 00:02:48,400 --> 00:02:52,000 Speaker 2: wisp coming off the lake turning into this black smoke 58 00:02:52,160 --> 00:02:55,239 Speaker 2: billowing off and you hear their screams and the tour 59 00:02:55,280 --> 00:02:58,320 Speaker 2: guides yelling them to run, and it was an incredibly 60 00:02:58,360 --> 00:03:01,680 Speaker 2: tough watch and a specially who was for the public gallery. 61 00:03:01,720 --> 00:03:03,560 Speaker 2: As we know, there were friends and family in there, 62 00:03:03,760 --> 00:03:05,880 Speaker 2: and you could definitely see the tears of these people 63 00:03:06,040 --> 00:03:07,960 Speaker 2: as they had to watch this confronting thing with your 64 00:03:08,040 --> 00:03:09,880 Speaker 2: loved ones saying it firsthand. 65 00:03:10,360 --> 00:03:11,799 Speaker 1: Jordan, thanks very much, appreciate your time. 66 00:03:11,800 --> 00:03:11,960 Speaker 3: Mate. 67 00:03:11,960 --> 00:03:14,959 Speaker 1: That's Jordan done. 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