A New Zealand company is held to account over a tourist tragedy.

Hello, and you're listening to the Marketplace Morning Report live from the BBC World Service.

I'm Leanna Burn.

Thanks for tuning in.

A New Zealand court has ruled that a tour company breached health and safety regulations

in relation to the 2019 White Island Volcano disaster, where 22 people died.

The judge said Wakari management limited, which licensed other companies to run tours

to the volcano had failed in its duty to minimize risk.

Now facing a fine of just under a million dollars.

Here's more from the BBC's Katie Silver.

The volcano was inherited by, originally by three brothers, it's been the same family

since 1936.

That's James, Andrew and Peter Bartle, who set up this company.

And according to the judge, they managed and controlled basically the active volcano.

It had been erupting in some form since 2011 and was a relatively popular tourist destination.

But as you mentioned, when it erupted back in the December of 2019, almost half of

the 47 people who were present on the island were killed, 17 were tourists from Australia,

three from the US, two from New Zealand.

Another 25 were injured, many suffering extensive burns, an absolutely huge disaster.

Now it was found that the volcano had been showing signs of unrest for weeks, with workplace

regulators saying the eruption was not unpeasable, but two operators were unprepared.

Now, there were 13 parties originally charged.

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