Six people are dead and eight are still missing on White Island after Monday's eruption
Police say they 'strongly suggest' the missing eight are also dead
The first victim has been named as White Island tour guide Hayden Marshall-Inman
Police said there would be a criminal investigation - but then rowed back
27 people have suffered burns to more than 30% of their bodies
24 of the 47 people on the island were from Australia
Others were from New Zealand, Germany, the US, the UK, China and Malaysia
Police Deputy Commissioner John Tims said he was "unsure" what state the bodies on White Island were in, adding that it was likely that they were "covered in ash".
He added that police were doing "everything we can to get back to the island...we're determined".
A helicopter on the island was destroyed by the eruption - photographs taken as people fled the island show the ash-covered aircraft.
Over the past few hours it has emerged that several helicopter pilots - including some from privately-run helicopter services - made the snap decision to fly to the island to rescue people after the eruption.
PM Jacinda Ardern paid tribute to their bravery earlier on Tuesday: "They made an incredibly brave decision under extraordinarily dangerous circumstances in an attempt to get people out."
Image source, Michael SchadeNew Zealand police said the eight people still unaccounted are likely dead.
"I would strongly suggest that there is no one that has survived on the island," deputy commissioner John Tims told reporters in Wellington.
Police say there are 27 people who have burns to their body "greater than 30%" - this means they will be treated at the National Burns Unit, which is "the highest care [New Zealand] can provide".
Several others have suffered inhalation injuries.
The nationalities of those who were on the island have now been announced by police. The breakdown is as such:
- 2 people from UK
- 4 from Germany
- 24 from Australia
- 5 from New Zealand
- 2 from China
-1 from Malaysia
-9 from the United States
Police deputy commissioner John Tims says police will commence a criminal investigation into the "death and injuries" on White Island.
New Zealand police say in a press conference that scientists from GNS say there is a "50% chance a smaller or similar size eruption" could happen in the next 24 hours. They add that a large eruption is "unlikely" at this time.
A police press conference in New Zealand is under way - it's the first of a number that is set to happen as authorities try to work out if they can get to the island.
New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern met the first responders to the White Island eruption earlier on Tuesday.
She was seen hugging and shaking the hands of those who were first on the scene, calling them "incredibly brave".
Image source, Getty Images
Image source, Getty ImagesAuckland Rescue Helicopter Trust has released this photo from a rescue helicopter heading toward the White Island volcano today:
Image source, AFP / Auckland Rescue Helicopter TrustA close relative of Tipene Maangi - a tour guide believed to have been on White Island when the volcano erupted - said he wasn't supposed to be at work on Monday.
Anihera Paku said Maangi, who only started his job earlier in September, was called in to pick up extra shifts.
Ms Paku said the family was "heartbroken"., external
"He's a really good people person, you could be having a really bad day and here comes Tipene and his cheeky remarks to brighten your day," she told news site Newshub.
"He would have been helping others before he thought about himself."
Waikato hospital in the central town of Hamilton says it is full, as it cares for patients from the White Island volcano.
Patients have been sent to hospitals across New Zealand to cope with the influx of injuries. It is believed that some patients are still in a critical condition.
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All police stations in the state of Western Australia will today fly their flags at half-mast in honour of the White Island victims, many of whom are feared to be Australian.
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Pilot John Funnell helped communicate with other helicopter pilots who flew into the area to help those caught up in the eruption. He has given a vivid account to Radio New Zealand about the bravery of the pilots involved. , external
"Because of the risk involved, getting them off the island as quick as we can and into a place of safety...of course that meant that those two or three pilots who went in there - into an active volcano - and loaded those people on board and flew them out are the guys that saved the day for the ones that did survive.
"They were landing right in the crater itself and the two pilots at the real start of it had to get out of their machines and walk around and search for survivors and then load them into their helicopters - some of these people were critically injured."
You can also listen to the interview here., external
Image source, Getty ImagesThree of those missing are reported to be a family from Adelaide, Australia.
Lisa Hosking, 48, her partner Gavin Dallow, 53, and daughter Zoe Hosking, 15, were on the Ovation of the Seas ship before the eruption, relatives told Australian media.
“We had the phone with us all last night,” Mr Dallow’s father, Brian, told the Adelaide Advertiser. “We don’t know anything, we haven’t heard anything.”
Zoe’s school in Adelaide, St Aloysius College, said its “thoughts and prayers” were with the family.
“We know that you share our sadness at this time,” said principal Paddy McEvoy. “We turn to our loving God to give us strength and courage in the days ahead.”
Image source, Rotary AdelaideGavin Dallow and Lisa Hosking
Well-wishers have left tributes to the dead at the port in Whakatane, a boat ride from White Island:
Image source, EPA
Image source, EPAThe Red Cross has put out a list of the missing. It includes people from as far as the Philippines, Portugal, China and the US. The full list is available here., external
One paramedic, who was part of a helicopter rescue team sent to the island after the eruption, said the scene that lay in front of him looked like something from Chernobyl.
"It was like the Chernobyl [TV] series, everything was just blanketed in ash. You can only imagine what is was like for the people there at the time," said Russell Clarke.
"They had nowhere to go and [it must have been] absolutely terrible."
Image source, AFPAustralian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has said that he believes 11 of 13 people missing are Australians.
At least three are feared to be dead, he told reporters in Sydney on Tuesday.
"I fear there is worse news to come over the course of perhaps today or over the next few days," he said.
"This is a terrible tragedy, a time of great innocence and joy interrupted by the horror of that eruption."
He thanked the cruise ship operator, Royal Caribbean, for helping to identify missing passengers.
Image source, EPAAustralian PM Scott Morrison and Foreign Minister Marise Payne speak on Tuesday
Shaimaa Khalil
BBC News, Whakatane
This morning was quiet and calm on Whakatane wharf, very different from the chaos and shock when the volcano erupted on White Island only a boat ride away.
Plumes of smoke and ash can still be seen in the distance. It's one of New Zealand’s most active volcanoes and this is what is preventing rescuers from going in. This is very much a recovery mission not a rescue operation. This volcano is now deemed unsafe for rescue teams to operate. But with no sign of life on the island, the assumption is that whoever is left there has not survived.
In Whakatane itself, some families have gathered near the harbour to support those whose loved ones have been severely injured and those who are still waiting and fearing the worst.
The question is - with a recently raised alert and warnings about its activity and unpredictability - why was it deemed safe for tourists to get that close such an explosive area?
Image source, Getty Images