Natural geothermal activity could have triggered an explosion of mud and ash at a Rotorua bore that showered a nearby house.
A 10m crater was carved into the grounds of a Whittaker Rd property whose owners were having a replacement bore drilled this month.
"The bore wasn't located in an active productionzone, so it should have been reasonably safe to drill," said Dougall Gordon, environmental scientist with the regional council, Environment Bay of Plenty, which is investigating the blowout.
"The blowout may therefore have been related to nearby natural thermal activity."
