The first trailer for Netflix's upcoming documentary on the tragedy of the Whakaari/White Island volcanic eruption, which claimed 22 lives and severely burned others, has been released.
Executive produced by Ron Howard and Leonardo di Caprio ‘The Volcano: Rescue From Whakaari’ synopsis says the story will be "terrifying and inspiring."
"During a routine sightseeing day trip to a remote volcanic island, 47 tourists and guides were trapped in the epicentre of a boiling pyroclastic surge of toxic dust and ash. Both terrifying and inspiring, the film uses first-hand accounts to convey the experience of living through such a lethal eruption," the synopsis continued.
Coming up three years after the tragedy the story of the survivors, rescuers and those who sadly passed is being told through first-hand videos and audio.
"From the description, it was a nice, easy hike. They didn’t make it sound dangerous,” one man who visited Whakaari is heard saying.
A man who came to the rescue of the survivors firmly said: "Doing nothing wasn't an option.”
"We're going to do it ourselves," said another.
"From the beginning, 'The Volcano' struck me largely as an event: a harrowing, lethal event, an eruption that happened at a specific time on a specific day and set into motion a specific narrative," director Rory Kennedy told Filmmaker Magazine.
“I felt strongly that this was a story that needed to be known more widely - for the families, for the survivors, for the rescuers, for the viewers.”
Kennedy continued to share that he and the team at Netflix spent a year researching the event and how to approach the victims of this horrific event.
“We entered this project with our eyes and hearts open; we had no agenda other than to let the people who experienced this unprecedented event tell their stories in their own voice.”
'The Volcano: Rescue From Whakaari' releases on December 16.
