Buy tomorrow's Herald for a special pullout on the volcanoes that made Auckland.
KEY POINTS:
No one knows when it will happen, but some day it certainly will.
Auckland's family of volcanoes, which now number around 50, will get a new member.
And a mock volcanic eruption in Auckland next month will test just how well prepared we are.
Organised by the Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management, Exercise Ruaumoko has already considered the effects of such a disaster, such as the evacuation of the city, blocked roads, destroyed buildings and the impact on water, electricity, sewerage and telephone services.
Groups such as firefighters, police, ambulance services, councils and ministries have already discussed their roles in such an event.
Participants also considered how public information would be distributed and what the social, economic and political fallout would be.
In a real event, the first signs would probably include small earthquakes, which would be picked up by the seismometers monitored by the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences in Taupo and Upper Hutt.
Although the seismometers pick up earth tremors of all sorts, they have never registered one associated with a volcano, says volcano seismologist Steve Sherburn of the Taupo office.
"But we can't predict with any accuracy when an eruption will happen. So we have to plan as if it will be tomorrow."
There are five sites around the Auckland region where seismic activity is monitored - at Nihotupu in the Waitakere Ranges, Moumoukai in the Hunua Ranges, on Motutapu Island, in Otara and at Kauri Point in the Waitemata Harbour.
Several more monitoring stations are planned, on Waiheke Island, at Riverhead, and in the Waiuku and Whangaparaoa areas. Mr Sherburn says the site at Riverhead, down 250m in an old water bore, is an excellent choice.
"Bore holes are a way to escape from human-induced noise, so that a clearer picture can be extracted of any natural seismic activity. The seismometers are so sensitive that you can pick the drop in traffic noise between a weekday and a Saturday."
* Exercise Ruaumoko runs from March 10-14.
www.exerciseruaumoko.co.nz
