The boat reportedly belonged to White Island Tours, according to the NZ Herald. Media reports suggested there were up to 53 passengers and 7 crew members aboard the ship at the time the fire broke out. The total number was later confirmed as 57.
All passengers and crew have been evacuated and accounted for, according to Whakatane authorities.
RadioLIVE has described chaotic scenes, with some passengers and crew jumping overboard to escape the burning vessel while small local boats hurry to save them.
At least "four or five" people have been taken to a local hospital, the radio reported.
Coast Guard and emergency services rushed to the coast of Whakatane after police received a call reporting the situation at around 3:45 pm local time (2:45 am GMT).
Some passengers were reportedly evacuated to another smaller tour vessel, while several boats could also be seen sailing to the shore on a live stream put up by the local Coastguard website.
The cause of the fire was not immediately clear.
A crowd of onlookers gathered on the shore, with some witnesses saying they could see people on the bow of the burning vessel. Katee Shanks, a reporter for Rotorua Daily Post, described the situation as "awful, the flames are huge and are taking over the ship."
Charter boat on fire off the Whakatane coast https://t.co/TR0wwPjqqa pic.twitter.com/XhiorRLtqL
โ Stuff.co.nz News (@NZStuff) January 18, 2016
Reader Comments
My wife and I live less than an hour from where the ship burned, and I can assure you, those waters are always cold as hell, summer and winter. Aussies get a 'summer' (sometimes a very nasty one, too) but Kiwis rarely do, and that's just fine with us, as we prefer cool and temperate to hot and humid any day. But swim in the waters? Only in a thermally insulated diving suit. Unless you're really fat (naturally insulated) as most Kiwis are, I am afraid to say......
The tour was checking out White Island, an active volcano just off the coast of the Western Bay of Plenty, the general area where we live.
One thing people don't know about New Zealand is that everywhere here there is a terribly negligent and utterly selfish concept and attitude that provides cover for Kiwi greed and incompetence, known as "She'll be right!" (Translation: "I don't give a f*ck, so don't bother me with your concerns".)
This is very BIG problem over here, as all kinds of stuff fails on a regular basis, and people get hurt, sometimes very badly. Even die.
Railings and stairs are old and in disrepair, but "she'll be right". Ladders creak and sway under your weight while climbing at another Kiwi 'adventure' attraction, but "she'll be right". Boats need a new engine due to dangerous leaking diesel fuel, but "she'll be right", and off the tour guide goes.... (Not saying that happened here, of course, but who knows?)
This is shocking, especially to an ex-pat American couple who are sick to death of leaky/drafty doors and windows, crappy craftsmanship, and an attitude of, "Let's drink beer and go fishing and f*ck doing a good job at anything, when we can slap it all together, bill the customer through the nose, and then quickly walk away to drink with our 'mates', as usual". It sucks, and it is dangerous, as you all can plainly see from this story. Again, no idea what happened here, but it sure looks like Kiwi 'business as usual'. Hope all are well, and nobody got hurt, of course.
"She'll be right". Yeah, in a pig's butt! Safety last, profits first, and the public be damned. It's the Kiwi way with a lot of folks, I am VERY sad to report......
BUT, it still beats living in America, in the belly of the world's evil Hegemon and destroyer of nations/peoples. We'll be staying here, in New Zealand, thank you (and keeping our eyes keenly peeled for good Kiwis who take pride in their work and products, because they are here and we support them , even after being burned by Kiwi incompetence far more than once....)