As a verdict on the owners of Whakaari is due to be released, Sharon Fergusson looks at how an active volcanic island became privately owned and then a marketed tourism attraction.
Whakaari was steaming when James Cook first saw it, and had been almost continuously active for 150,000 years. Regular eruptions had created the island, which became known as New Zealand's most active volcano.
In recent times, Whakaari erupted regularly from 1975 until 2000. Then again in 2012, 2016, and 2019.
It was the 2019 eruption that shocked the world, when 47 people, mainly tourists, suffered horrific burns, killing 22 of them.
A whole industry had sprung up by then, profiting from putting thousands of tourists a year in a very dangerous environment.
A search of old newspapers shows fascination with the volcano dates back at least a century. Even though early on, the true risk of being on the island became tragically obvious.
"Ten Men Disappear". This article describes the 1914 eruption in which 10 sulphur workers lost their lives. During the eruption the camp was buried by a land slide and lava flow, the only survivor - the camp cat.
In 1923, mining was attempted again, but this time miners built their huts in an area that seemed safer. Sulphur continued to be mined there until the 1930s, in an era of blatant disregard for the health and lives of miners.
Over the years volcanic activity was reported regularly. Sometimes several times a year.
After the mine closed, the odd boat trip continued to land there despite a ban prohibiting excursions to the island.
In the early 1940s applications to open it for "picnic excursions" were refused on the basis that the boat that would transport visitors was "not built to the standards of sea going vessels".
But by 1946 there were regular excursions to the volcano according to a report in the Bay of Plenty Beacon.
Private ownership
Whakaari had been in private ownership since the 1860s. The last person to purchase it was George Raymond Buttle.
The story above appeared in the Herald in 1936. Headlined "A Volcano Privately Owned", it goes on to describe Mr Ray Buttle as an Auckland sharebroker who bought the island from the mining company White Island Products Limited, which was in liquidation.
He said: "I do not intend to develop the island commercially, but I like the idea of owning a volcano and there may come a day when the island will again acquire commercial value." He declined to reveal the price he paid.
An article in 1973 says it was purchased for 100 pounds. But the family have never confirmed this.
In the book Island Volcano written by Bill Parham in 1973, Raymond Buttle is quoted as saying: "Strange as it may seem, the island is unbelievably beautiful and beyond description. Surely it is one of the wonders of the world."
He later refused to sell it to the government, but agreed in 1952 that it be declared a private scenic reserve.
In 1957 he handed the island to his son John.
Island Volcano describes John sailing his yacht from Auckland to White Island in 1966, with a group of scientists and keen fishermen. The author writes, John "likes to get out to see his volcano every couple of years of so."
It also says: "He does not lack offers from would-be buyers.
"It was proposed to make a further attempt to exploit its 'mineral riches'. An Australian offered as much as $10,000 for a half share."
John turned down the offer. "I was rather surprised afterwards to think how quickly I had said 'No'."
The writer says "the uncanny fascination of the place" exercises a powerful hold on the family. "We would all hate to lose it," said Raymond Buttle.
In 2012, the island's title was transferred to the Whakaari Trust, whose shareholders are Peter, Andrew and James Buttle, Raymond's grandsons.
Their business, Whakaari Management Ltd, started actively promoting the island as a tourist destination, and it's their business that was charged by WorkSafe for health and safety breaches in allowing tourists and visitors on the island in the years leading up to the eruption.
The brothers have chosen to stay silent on the devastating eruption of 2019. Their only comments made public are from a WorkSafe interview played in court. In it, they express regret at the suffering caused, but skirt around the issue of responsibility.
A promotional video made before Whakaari erupted highlights the lack of awareness of the danger.
"White Island is quite iconic actually as far as New Zealand is concerned. I think a lot of the tourism agencies are realising that it's quite a good selling point for New Zealand. Because it's unique as far as the fact that you can walk into a volcano from sea level and access that power and essence of the Earth," Andrew Buttle said in the film.
Peter goes on to say: "There's more that we don't know about the island than we do, I suspect. So it's going to be a voyage of discovery as we go forward."
The video was taken off the local council's website after the tragic events of December 9, 2019.
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