A criminal trial has heard evidence from an Australian survivor of a New Zealand volcano eruption who lost his parents and sister in the 2019 disaster, saying he is still tormented by his decision to leave his family to seek help.
Jesse Langford, from Sydney, was 19 years old when he joined his father Anthony, 51, mother Kristine, 46, and sister Winona, 17, on a family trip to New Zealand aboard the Royal Caribbean cruise liner Ovation of the Seas in December 2019.
Langford was left with burns to his hands, back and thighs, with his father, mother and sister killed during a day trip to the Whakaari-White Island volcano located off New Zealand’s northern coast.
Langford’s video interview with police in April 2020 was played to Auckland District Court on Monday where Whakaari-White Island’s owners, ID Tours and Tauranga Tourism Services are accused of safety breaches that resulted in the deaths of 22 people, including 14 Australians.
The island’s owners, the Buttle family, ID Tours and Tauranga Tourism Services Limited have been accused of breaching health and safety regulations. The six individuals and entities have pleaded not guilty to charges of failures of health and safety law.
Like previous Australian witness Annie Yongan Lu, Langford said he was given no indication of any dangers before going on the trip and had only a short safety briefing on the day with no plans for emergencies.
He said his tour group including his family members were caught in a relatively flat and open area on their walk down from the crater when the volcano erupted.
Langford said he was thrown over a mound by the force of an eruption before curling up in the foetal position and covering his head with his hands after being hit in the face by a flying rock.
“I was being hammered by this sandstorm like in the movies where you can’t see two metres in front of you. I was in so much pain,” he said.
Once the eruption clouds lifted the island returned to the clear day it was before, except everything was covered in grey ash.
“Dad was sitting up and struggling to breathe while trying to get his gas mask off. Mum was not moving at all,”Langford said.
He said he sat with the group for 15 to 20 minutes thinking about what he could do while feeling his whole body shot through with pain.
“I made the decision that I couldn’t physically help anyone but I could let people know others had survived ... it still bothers me making that decision to get up and walk away,” Langford said.
After finding help at the pier and reaching a hospital Langford fell into a coma for eight days and woke up back in Australia in an intensive care unit. His sister’s body was never found.
The trial began last week and has heard from other survivors.
In March, ID Tours failed in a bid to have the charges against the company dismissed. It said its role in the tourism “supply chain” did not extend to what happened on the island, a claim the judge rejected.
Several other companies involved in facilitating the trip to Whakaari have already admitted to charges against them. They will be sentenced after the current trial, which is expected to take four months.
If convicted, the organisations face maximum fines of NZ$1.5m ($930,000/£720,000) or NZ$300,000 for individuals.
