Mt. TARA WERA ERUPTED JUST 63 YEARS AGO

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 13, Issue 97, 10 June 1949, Page 5

Mt. TARA WERA ERUPTED JUST 63 YEARS AGO

Today is the anniversary of the greatest volcanic eruption man has ever experienced in New Zealand. Just 63 years ago Mount Tarawera erupted with all the fury of Dante’s Inferno pxposed. Showing its contempt for man the volcano rained lava and rock over a wide area and its deafening explosions were heard and felt all over the Bay of Plenty. The volcano woke to violent activity in the early hours of June 10, 1886, when slumbering people about Tarawera and Te Wairoa were wakened to find the fires from inside the earth had been opened up around them. Together with Lake Rotomahana, which had become a volcano, nature performed a spectacular fireworks display of fire and crimson lava, terrifying in its unleashed wildness but holding those who saw it in an almost hypnotic fascination. The land was laid waste and desolate, and it took years for nature to heal the scarred wounds which, in some places, may still be seen to this day. Besides the exploding mountain there were earthquakes, lightning and gales which made the escape of those near the volcano difficult. Added to this was the falling fire, rock and lava. Many people were overwhelmed and Maori Pas destroyed. The exact number of lives lost was never discovered.