New Zealand police raised the official death toll from last year's White Island volcanic eruption to 22 on Thursday, adding a German national who succumbed to his injuries in July.

Police said Horst Westenfelder, 64, died on July 2 from medical complications arising from injuries sustained during the eruption.

There were 47 people, mainly Australian tourists, on the island -- also known as Whakaari -- in December 2019, when a column of burning ash and steam blasted from a volcanic vent.

In a statement released by police, Westenfelder's wife Angelika paid tribute to her husband's bravery.

"It is unbelievable, how many months my joyful, sensible and strong husband Horsti was fighting for his life, and I am thankful to everyone who was thinking of us and helping us during that very hard time," she said.

"He lost this battle and started his last journey in July."

Asked why it took almost five months for Westerfelder's death to be included in the official toll, police said the change was made "as soon as practicably possible".

New Zealand employment safety regulator WorkSafe has been investigating why tourists were visiting an active volcano three weeks after its eruption alert level had been raised.

It is expected to complete its report before the disaster's anniversary on December 9.

Related Links
Bringing Order To A World Of Disasters
When the Earth Quakes
A world of storm and tempest

Tweet

Piecing together the Alaska coastline's fractured volcanic activity
Amherst MA (SPX) Nov 18, 2020
Among seismologists, the geology of Alaska's earthquake- and volcano-rich coast from the Aleutian Islands to the southeast is fascinating, but not well understood. Now, with more sophisticated tools than before, a University of Massachusetts Amherst team reports unexpected new details about the area's tectonic plates and their relationships to volcanoes. Plate tectonics - the constant underground movement of continental and ocean shelves, is often characterized by "subduction zones" where plates c ... read more