Updated 7 September (NZT): There was a brief eruption from Mt
Tongariro in the central North Island just before midnight on 6
August, New Zealand time.
It is the first eruption from the mountain since 1897.
The Ministry of Civil Defence & Emergency Management (MCDEM)
monitored the situation over the past month with the assistance of
government scientific advisors and the volcanic alert level is now
Level 1.
All major roads in the central North Island, domestic flights,
and the two ski fields on Mt Ruapehu, Whakapapa and Turoa, which
lie south of Mt Tongariro, have remained open since 7 August 2012.
The eruption caused no impact to international flights between the
main centres of Auckland and Wellington.
On 28 August the Department of Conservation (DOC) confirmed that
the Red Crater Tongariro Alpine Crossing tracks would re-open to
trampers on Saturday 1 September, 2012. There continues to be
a small 3km section of the track that remains closed while damage
to the facilities is fixed. For more information on this please see
the DOC website.
Please see below for translations in Chinese, Korean and
Japanese.
ENDS
Issued by Leah Phelps, Senior Communications Advisor, Tourism
New Zealand, leah.phelps@tnz.govt.nz;
phone +64 21 843 896