New research allows quick assessment of damage from volcanic ashfall

Wellington, Sep 23 (IANS) New research will enable authorities to quickly assess the damage from volcanic ashfall during and after an eruption to better respond to the needs of each community.

"A volcanic eruption could affect thousands of buildings around the North Island, and we need a New Zealand model that provides us with a quick assessment of the scale of the damage," Josh Hayes, GNS Natural Hazard and Risk scientist who led this research said on Monday.

The research project funded by the Natural Hazards Commission (NHC) aims to fill a gap between the existing internationally developed models and local New Zealand post-eruption data collection, according to the research authors.

Hundreds of thousands of North Island homes could be covered in ashfall following a volcanic eruption, and assessing the damage could take months, Hayes said, adding that the understanding of the ashfall effects is highly informed by overseas experiences, Xinhua news agency reported.

Physically assessing ashfall damage is time-consuming, particularly widespread ashfall events, so creating a damage forecasting model is hugely beneficial for authorities and communities to concentrate resources, said the GNS scientist.

The NHC has funded projects over the past years that have provided valuable insights into how New Zealand homes stand up to different amounts of ash on their roof, as well as predicting where the ash will travel by using weather forecasting, said NHC Head of Research Natalie Balfour.

The two-year project is expected to complete the new modelling tool by the end of 2025 by scientists from GNS, the University of Canterbury, and Singapore's Nanyang Technological University, who are currently creating scenarios and developing the modelling approach.

--IANS

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