12/06/2026
On the 10th of June 1886 at 1am, local people were awoken to earthquakes, lightning, fountains of molten rock and columns of smoke and ash up to 10 km high.
A series of violent eruptions resulted in the creation of a 15km long crater on Mt Tarawera. The crater is up to 2.5km wide and up to 270 meters deep. The surrounding land was buried with millions of tonnes of ash and debris, transformed lakes and flattened bush.
Three Māori villages were buried with a loss of life of over 150 people. The famous Pink and White Terraces were destroyed – at the time they were regarded as the Eighth Wonder of the World.