A helicopter pilot said he and two of his passengers were seriously injured when a New Zealand volcano erupted in 2019 by jumping into the sea, killing 22 people
From
ROD McGUIRK Associated Press
Jul 13, 2023 1:33 pm ET
• 4 min reading
CANBERRA, Australia — A helicopter pilot told court on Thursday he and two of his passengers escaped serious injury by jumping into the sea when a New Zealand volcano erupted in 2019, killing 22 people.
Two other passengers on pilot Brian Depauw’s Joy Flight failed to make it to the water’s edge and were engulfed in a hot plume of ash from the White Island eruption, suffering severe burns.
Belgian-born Depauw, who speaks with an Irish accent, testified Thursday in Auckland District Court in the trial of three tourism companies and three directors accused of safety breaches related to the December 9 disaster.
“The water saved us,” Depauw said in court.
Depauw and his four German passengers were among 47 people on White Island, the top of an underwater volcano also known by the Indigenous Maori name Whakaari, when superheated gases erupted. Most of the 25 survivors suffered severe burns.
Depauw, who currently resides in Canada, said he has only been working for tour operator Volcanic Air for three or four weeks and is taking his first unattended flight with the company on the day of the eruption.
He had said to his passengers, two German couples, during the safety briefing: “If you see me running – I always make jokes – follow me too.”
When the volcano erupted, passengers wanted to return to the helicopter, but the pilot decided the water was a safer option.
“I heard my client say, ‘Shall we run away now? I looked behind me and saw the cloud rise 305 or 610 meters high. I saw boulders and debris shooting toward us, so I said, “Run, run, run to the water.” “Follow me,” Depauw told police in a video statement taken three days after the eruption and delivered to the court on Thursday was presented.
Depauw and one of the couples traversed the 150 to 200 meters (656 ft) to the water before being rolled over by the ash.
“The moment I touched the water, it turned black. The ash came and obviously hit us and I couldn’t see anything,” he said.
“It would take a minute or two. I was underwater trying to hold my breath for as long as possible until I saw some light through the ash,” Depauw added.
He then helped his two passengers, who avoided being burned, to a boat. The man had lost his glasses and the woman’s contact lenses were scratched by the ash cloud, leaving both with difficulty seeing.
The couple who failed to reach the water suffered “rather severe burns,” Depauw said.
Court photos showed that Depauw’s helicopter was thrown from its landing pad by the force of the volcano and its rotors were bent.
When questioned by prosecutor Steve Symons on Thursday, Depauw said he believed there would be warning signs before the volcano erupted. At the time, he had not known that the volcano had only erupted in 2016.
“As I understand it, if the volcano were to erupt, there would be some signs and some time to leave the island,” Depauw said.
He said his only injuries were a cut knee, a strained back muscle and a temporary ash irritation in his eyes.
The island’s owners, brothers Andrew, James and Peter Buttle; her company Whakaari Management Ltd.; and the tour operator ID Tours NZ Ltd. and Tauranga Tourism Services Ltd. have pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Other tour operators have pleaded guilty and will be fined at a later date.
Each of the companies faces a maximum fine of NZ$1.5 million (US$927,000), while each of the accused brothers faces a maximum fine of NZ$300,000 (US$185,000).
The trial, scheduled to last 16 weeks, was adjourned on Thursday and will resume on Monday.