Charges laid in the wake of the deadly 2019 Whakaari / White Island eruption will be heard from tomorrow, after proceedings were opened with a whakatau at Auckland District Court this afternoon.
The courtroom was packed for this afternoon's opening. Family members and survivors were among those present.
Before anything else, a health and safety briefing was read to the crowded room, in case of emergency.
The case was then called and Ngāti Whātua led the whakatau, ending with the waiata Te Aroha being sung.
Judge Evangelos Thomas ended by thanking the iwi and reiterating that the landscape of the trial has changed in recent days.
Six defendants will go on trial tomorrow, facing charges laid in the wake of the deadly 2019 eruption. (Source: 1News)
On Friday, three defendants entered shock, 11th-hour guilty pleas, meaning they will now not go to trial.
It led to the trial proper being delayed from starting today until tomorrow morning.
"All the parties who remain have lots of readjustment to do," Thomas said.
"No doubt they've been working hard since those developments to be ready.
"I ask everyone please to be patient about that process, it is part and parcel of any trial," he said.
Whakaari Management Limited and its directors Andrew, James and Peter Buttle, as well as ID Tours New Zealand Limited and Tauranga Tourism Services Limited, are the defendants in the trial.
The charges were brought by WorkSafe.
The charges relate to alleged health and safety failures before the fatal 2019 eruption, which killed 22 people.
None of the charges relate to the eruption itself or the aftermath, including the rescue and recovery of victims following the eruption.
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