Rotorua: Mt Tarawera eruption anniversary marked with film screening

Rotorua Stories Cinema. Photo / Rotorua Museum

The anniversary of what is known as one of the worst recorded natural disasters in New Zealand history is tomorrow, and locals are encouraged to remember this part of Rotorua's history.

On June 10, 1886, Mount Tarawera erupted. More than 120 people died under the ash and mud that rained down on the district on that fateful night, and entire villages disappeared forever.

People can reflect on this historic event by watching the Tarawera Eruption - Rotorua Stories movie that was previously shown at Rotorua Museum Te Whare Taonga o Te Arawa.

Tomorrow at 12.15pm, the 15-minute film will be played on the video wall in the Community Pride Space at Rotorua Library, Te Aka Mauri.

Following the movie, Rotorua Library Mātauranga Māori and Engagement Lead, Rangitihi Pene (Tuhourangi, Ngati Whaoa), will be available to answer questions about the eruption and the effect it had on the local iwi.

Pene said the anniversary each year was a significant day for the iwi who suffered grimly in the eruption.

"It's really a national event in that it was one of the few really devastating volcanic eruptions in New Zealand.

"It's something we should remember as part of our community history."

Well-known as the "shaky seat" cinema in Rotorua Museum, the Tarawera Eruption - Rotorua Stories film has been played on the eruption anniversaries, and apart from that it hadn't been seen publicly since the museum closed for earthquake strengthening in November 2016.

The Rotorua Stories movie will take people plummeting 13km into the belly of the Earth to discover the scientific and mythological aspects of Rotorua's volatile landscape. Visit the world famous Pink and White Terraces, encounter great Te Arawa tūpuna (ancestors), and experience a portrayal of the 1886 eruption of Mount Tarawera.

Pene said this would be a great opportunity to view the film on a big screen.

The Pink and White Terraces, a major tourist attraction once described as the "Eighth Wonder of the World", were destroyed along with the livelihoods of nearby tribes, who relied on the visitor trade.

Western Bay Community Archives has been fortunate enough to receive a copy of a letter written by Harriet Emma Bennett of Te Puke to her friend Mrs Stainer.

Mrs Bennett vividly describes the eruption itself, and its aftermath.

She, along with her husband Captain Philip Bennett and their children, sailed to New Zealand aboard the steamer Ionic, arriving in Wellington on January 20, 1885.

They had bought 300 acres of land from Mr GV Stewart which stretched from No 2 Rd to No 1 Rd and called it Norwood.

The transcript of the letter was given to Western Bay Community Archives by a direct descendant of Mrs Bennett.

Part of the letter recording has Harriet Emma Bennett saying: "1am, felt something uncanny, as if the bed was shaken by somebody's hand. Then the girls came into my room asking if I felt the earthquake.

"In a few minutes came another bigger shock. I got up and went with them on the veranda. Over by the hot lakes I saw what looked like the moon rising. This gradually spread and took an elongated form.

"There were then three tremendous booms as if from a 100 tonne gun and cascades of flames shot up from three places from this elongation. Blue lightning was playing all around it and in the sky were what looked like fiery serpents from every star all over our heads and everywhere. The shocks kept getting heavier.

"Although the scene was so awful, a kind of fascination kept us outside gazing ... the roar and rumbling was terrific."