New court documents filed in the US allege cruise passengers hurt and killed in the Whakaari eruption weren't warned about the dangers they were walking into.
An image from footage taken on Whakaari Island by a visitor before the 2019 eruption. Photo: Screengrab / YouTube / Allessandro Kauffman
Florida attorney Michael Winkleman is representing several plaintiffs in action against US-based cruise company Royal Caribbean and Whakatāne tour company White Island Tours.
The volcano erupted in December 2019 while tourist groups were visiting it, killing 22 people and leaving others with serious burns.
Winkleman says tourists received a brochure informing them it was one of the world's most active volcanos.
However he said it didn't mention a recent change in the volcanic alert level - from a one to a two.
"What they left out was the alarming number of things that had happened in the weeks leading up to the actual eruption, most notibly lifting the volcano scale from a one to a two."
"There was so much chatter that was out there that went to showing that there was a far increased likelihood of there being an eruption, and none of that was passed on to the Royal Caribbean passengers. So they weren't given that opportunity to make a fully informed decision about whether they wanted to park themselves on that island for that day."
Winkleman said a recent change now allows Australian residents to have their case heard in US courts.
White Island Tours and Royal Caribbean have been approached for comment.
