# Don't play in active volcanoes, people! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 9, 2019, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596 "2019-12-09T15:44:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2019, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/21 "2019-12-09T21:37:33Z")
I’ve hiked atop active volcanoes, and am still here to talk about it. It depends on the volcano and its risk factors. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2019, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/22 "2019-12-09T22:06:21Z")
> [@Spiderman](#): > > Were the participants, who may have booked their excursions months ago, made aware of the recent geologic activity? Cruise ships stop for layovers at various places and tourists may get off and do their own thing. It looks like that is what happened here. The cruise ship had \*\*4579 passengers; \*\* thus only a very small fraction went for a volcano tour on this 12 day excursion from Australia. > **[Aussies on Ovation of the Seas caught in New Zealand's volcano tragedy](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7772447/Passengers-aboard-Ovation-Seas-caught-New-Zealands-volcano-tragedy-horror.html)** > > Australians are believed to be among the visitors on Whakaari from a nearby cruise ship, the Ovation of the Seas, which originated in Sydney. ---
**Author:** ![Mundane\_Super\_Hero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mundane_super_hero/32/6304_2.png) [@Mundane\_Super\_Hero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mundane_Super_Hero)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2019, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/23 "2019-12-09T22:37:11Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > New Zealand has always had awesome tourist trip ideas. Like in the late 1970’s when they thought it would be a grand idea to run tourist flights to Antarctica in a DC-10. Which was great, until they ran a plane at full speed into Mount Erebus, killing 257. Wikipedia never did update its change in height. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2019, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/24 "2019-12-09T22:47:03Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > But Tom Hanks seems to be everyone. Not in Baltimore. In Baltimore, [they’re all Ernest Borgnines](https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2WOTIOpMKpo/T_pE3kj4LVI/AAAAAAAAFUM/CG8EsLhK2_I/s1600/Josh%2BAlan%2BFriedman%2BBorgnine%2BCartoon.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2019, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/25 "2019-12-09T22:57:30Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > … It is almost like saying never live in the US Midwest because for a few minutes every number of years any one spot might be hit by a FU tornado. I don’t know if “hit by a FU tornado” was a typo or intentional, but it was awesome either way. [Tornadoes act _exactly_ like they’re dancing around going “fuck you, fuck you, and fuck you”](https://cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/130521215122-01-moore-ok-052113141-horizontal-large-gallery.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![ASL\_v2.0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asl_v2.0/32/3525_2.png) [@ASL\_v2.0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASL_v2.0)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/26 "2019-12-10T02:57:11Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > Not everyone can be Tom Hanks. Wouldn’t Andy Serkis be a better analogy? ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/27 "2019-12-10T05:16:01Z")
> [@ASL\_v2.0](#): > > Wouldn’t Andy Serkis be a better analogy? No. Gollum died…but Joe Banks lived happily ever after with Meg Ryan and some really great luggage. ---
**Author:** ![installLSC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/54ee81/32.png) [@installLSC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/installLSC)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/28 "2019-12-10T06:19:16Z")
[And now an investigation about whether people should have been allowed near the volcano.](https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2019/dec/10/new-zealand-volcano-eruption-white-island-blast-latest-updates) ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 9:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/29 "2019-12-10T09:55:58Z")
When I heard the first reports on the radio I said to my wife “must be White Island”. We were in NZ in 2003 and a White Island trip was a possible but when we read up on it, it was clear that it was, and always has been a pretty unstable place with clear risks inherent in an active and unreliable volcano. The literature impressed upon us right there and then that an eruption, without warning, was a possibility. We didn’t go. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 10:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/30 "2019-12-10T10:21:57Z")
A newlywed couple from Virginia, Matthew and Lauren Urey, were badly burned. [American couple on honeymoon seriously injured in New Zealand volcano eruption](http://590kid.com/american-couple-on-honeymoon-seriously-injured-in-new-zealand-volcano-eruption/) ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/31 "2019-12-10T11:18:18Z")
As of this morning there are six confirmed deaths (one person died in the hospital on Tuesday) That leaves 31 in the hospital, of which 27 have burns over 30% or more of their bodies, many over 50%. Some of these burns are deep and severe and patients have already had to undergo surgery for them. Burn injuries also include injuries to the lungs, probably from inhaling sulfur dioxide (a pretty common volcanic gas) as well as hot air and volcanic ash. By the way, volcanic “ash” is actually very, very fine fragments of volcanic _glass_ with sharp edges. It’s not something you want to inhale. That is extremely bad news and likely more of the injured will die. New Zealand is looking at transferring the injured Australians to Australia to free up local resources, but many patients are not stable enough to transport, and people from places like the US and UK will have to remain in New Zealand for some time as there is no way to transport severely injured people halfway around the world in a safe manner. It will be weeks, at the very least, before those patients are stable enough to move. No one is expecting those missing on the island (eight people) to be found alive. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/32 "2019-12-10T13:53:45Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > Cruise ships stop for layovers at various places and tourists may get off and do their own thing. It looks like that is what happened here. The cruise ship had \*\*4579 passengers; > \*\* thus only a very small fraction went for a volcano tour on this 12 day excursion from Australia. > [Passengers aboard Ovation of the Seas caught up in New Zealand's volcano tragedy describe horror | Daily Mail Online](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7772447/Passengers-aboard-Ovation-Seas-caught-New-Zealands-volcano-tragedy-horror.html) And plenty of people book those tours independently of the cruise line - you can often book the exact same tour directly from the tour operator at a lower price. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/33 "2019-12-10T14:41:58Z")
> [@Hermitian](#): > > Should never have been allowed by the cruise line or the government? I am not a fan of outlawing behavior that puts your own life at risk. As long as: > > 1. You are at an age/mental state that you can make that decision. > 2. We aren’t going to ask anyone else to be in danger to rescue your ass when you get in trouble. On its face this sounds reasonable, but you know that the risk management calculus for rescuers (and the resource utilization calculus for emergency medical personnel) will never be made dependent on moral judgments about the victims they rescue/treat. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/34 "2019-12-10T17:07:26Z")
San Franciscan Michael Schade (not the opera singer, [Michael Schade - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Schade)) reported that he was standing at the crater’s edge just 20 minutes before the eruption, both he and his family. He’s been tweeting about it: > > > He is very fortunate (of course). Wow, talk about an event that’ll make you think how closely you came to dying. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/35 "2019-12-10T18:12:40Z")
> [@installLSC](#): > > [And now an investigation about whether people should have been allowed near the volcano.](https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2019/dec/10/new-zealand-volcano-eruption-white-island-blast-latest-updates) What are the legal issues? It was known before the disaster that going near the volcano was dangerous as fuck, but so are a lot of extreme sports and people are still allowed to do them. Or is it a question of whether some tour operators baldly lied and told people the trip was 100% not risky? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/36 "2019-12-10T18:15:15Z")
**Don’t play in active volcanoes, people!** Why weren’t we told about this before? I was planning to go play in an active volcano and now I have non-refundable plane tickets. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/37 "2019-12-10T21:51:46Z")
> [@DPRK](#): > > … is it a question of whether some tour operators baldly lied and told people the trip was 100% not risky? I suspect they told the truth - something along these lines: “A true eruption could be dangerous - but we’ve been doing this tour for X years with no problems and many happy customers. We’re confident enough that we send our helicopters, pilots and tour guides there regularly.” ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/38 "2019-12-10T22:40:20Z")
I recently returned from Hawaii, where I walked across the floor of the Kīlauea Iki crater. That’s associated with a volcano that’s still active. Hundreds of people make that hike every day, and I don’t believe it has erupted since 1959 > **[Kīlauea Iki](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C4%ABlauea_Iki)** > > Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}19°24.833′N 155°14.785′W / 19.413883°N 155.246417°W / 19.413883; -155.246417 > Kīlauea Iki is a pit crater that is next to the main summit caldera of Kīlauea on the island of Hawaiʻi in the Hawaiian Islands. It is known for its... Of course, there haven’t been any special warnings recently about that one, and I gather there were in NZ. I wonder if the tourists knew that the risk was unusually high. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/39 "2019-12-10T23:52:55Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > When I heard the first reports on the radio I said to my wife “must be White Island”. > > We were in NZ in 2003 and a White Island trip was a possible but when we read up on it, it was clear that it was, and always has been a pretty unstable place with clear risks inherent in an active and unreliable volcano. The literature impressed upon us right there and then that an eruption, without warning, was a possibility. > > We didn’t go. What did the brochure say about Sentinel Island? ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2019, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596/40 "2019-12-11T00:14:04Z")
A few articles about the rescue: > **[White Island volcano: Geography student Lillani Hopkins tells of remarkable...](https://www.smh.com.au/world/oceania/it-could-have-been-me-geography-student-tells-of-remarkable-rescue-mission-after-nz-eruption-20191210-p53iq5.html)** > > Geography student Lillani Hopkins had been on White Island for the trip of a lifetime with her dad. What was supposed to be a "nice father-daughter day out" instead became a rescue mission. > **[Whakaari / White Island rescues: Pilots 'saved the day' - observer](https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/405215/whakaari-white-island-rescues-pilots-saved-the-day-observer)** > > Pilot John Funnell, who helped with communications as other pilots risked their lives to fly into an active volcano, says they were motivated to bring out anybody who was alive. > **['Nothing less than a hero': Skipper risked life to save others](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/white-island-eruption-nothing-less-than-a-hero-skipper-paul-kingi-put-his-own-life-in-danger-to-save-others/GKDZ6ESRF6ABZ7D2KSJJ6VKJ7U/?c_id=1&objectid=12292539)** > > Details emerged of how Paul Kingi put his own life in danger to save others. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-play-in-active-volcanoes-people/844596.md?page=3)