At least one Australian is still entombed on New Zealand volcano island or buried at sea

Two Australians may still be buried on New Zealand’s White Island or lost at sea following Monday’s deadly volcanic eruption.

Kiwi soldiers recovered six of the eight bodies remaining on the island by mid-afternoon on Friday after being deployed to the disaster zone in protective suits and gas masks. 

Before the daring mission, there were six Australian tourists and two New Zealand tour guides left on the island.

Australia’s foreign minister Marise Payne said all six bodies recovered were those of the Australians – but New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said that’s not true.

Meanwhile, on Saturday morning health authorities confirmed seven Australians who had been evacuated from New Zealand were in critical conditions in Sydney hospitals. 

The family of Kiwi tour guide Tipene Maangi have also said on social media his body was flown off the island on Friday, Stuff reported.

Therefore, at least one Australian is yet to be retrieved. 

New Zealand’s police commissioner Mike Bush said it was believed one of the remaining victims is under water, while the location of the other was unclear.

‘We do believe that at least one of them is in the water and the other one we are unsure, so that only leaves two possibilities… they’re on the island… or they too are in the water,’ he said.

One of the bodies was spotted in the water during aerial surveillance of the island.

Divers have joined the search to scour the shallows for the remaining two bodies, and commissioner Bush said the search would continue until all of them were recovered.

The Australians who authorities said were still on the island were Karla Matthews, 32, and Richard ‘Rick’ Elzer, 32, from Coffs Harbour, Brisbane mother and daughter Julie Richards, 47, and Jessica Richards, 20, Adelaide schoolgirl Zoe Hosking, 15, and Melbourne woman Krystal Browitt, 21. 

They are among up to 15 Australians killed by the heat, ash and toxic gases that enveloped the island following Monday’s eruption.

Sydney’s Hollander brothers Berend, 16, and Matthew, 13, and Coffs Harbour man Jason Griffiths died in hospital from their horrific burns, while Adelaide man Gavin Dallow, 53, was declared dead on Wednesday. 

The rescue operation on Friday came as families faced the painstaking task of identifying their loved ones in hospitals on the New Zealand mainland.

In one case the family of an Australian victim were asked to identify the wrong body, The Daily Telegraph reported. 

On Friday, it was also revealed an entire Australian family of four are believed to have been killed in Monday’s White Island volcano eruption. 

Matthew Hollander, 13, and his brother Berend, 16, schoolboys at Sydney’s Knox Grammar, both died in hospital after being caught up in the disaster in New Zealand. 

Their parents Martin, 48, and Barbara Hollander, 50, are also presumed dead and remain missing.

Of the six bodies recovered from the island on Friday, Mr and Mrs Hollander were not believed to be among them.

Relatives of the family, who moved from Chicago to Australia five years ago, have given up hope the couple are still alive.

‘We are together with our family grieving the loss of our loved ones,’ the statement provided by Barbara’s American parents to Chicago’s ABC Eyewitness News said.

‘Our amazing daughter Barbara Hollander and our son-in-law Martin Hollander were a wonderful couple and parents to our grandsons Ben and Matthew.’

‘We appreciate all the support and contact from our friends and family.

‘During this trying time we ask for privacy as we process all the tragic events that have occurred. A memorial service will be planned for the summer/fall of 2020.’  

Neighbours in the US said the family moved from Northbrook in Chicago’s northern suburbs to Australia five years ago.

‘He had family back there and it made sense to me, as a former school teacher, to do so (move back to Australia) while the boys were young,’ the neighbour said.  

Although they are missing, Martin and Barbara were not on the list of people NZ Police said were unaccounted for and not known to be in hospital or discharged.

Knox headmaster Scott James announced the boys’ deaths in a letter to parents in the early hours of Thursday morning.

‘Please take some time to reflect on the lives of Matthew and Ben and this devastating loss for our community,’ the letter read.

Mr James wrote that Matthew, a member of the Class of 2023, was involved in Cadets and represented the school in basketball, squash and debating and was elected as a mentor representative in 2018/19.

‘Matthew had a close circle of friends and was popular with his peers. He was always enthusiastic about life and was actively involved in school and year group activities,’ he wrote.

‘Ben was actively engaged in sports and co-curricular activities at Knox, developing a passion for AFL, cadets, CRU and his biggest passion, baseball.

‘He had a great love for the outdoors and camp. Ben was a compassionate and enthusiastic student, with an interest in software design.

‘Ben’s engaging smile and quirky sense of humour made him a good mate to his close group of friends and a welcome member to every classroom.’  

Mr Hollander’s LinkedIn profile lists him as both a freight initiatives manager for Transport for NSW and an investment director for Singapore-based Wipunen Incrementum Capital. 

The body of Krystal Browitt, 21, meanwhile, is believed to have been retrieved from White Island on Friday. 

Krystal Browitt set sail on a 13-day cruise with her parents Paul and Marie and older sister Stephanie, 23, just six days after the November 29 milestone.

Friends said the working-class Melbourne family saved up for months to afford the ‘cruise of a lifetime’ and were excited to treat themselves.

But their dream holiday turned to heartbreak when Mr Browitt and his two children took an excursion to White Island on Monday.

Ms Browitt, who has a ‘walking issue’, stayed behind on the Ovation of the Seas cruise ship and could only watch in horror as the volcano erupted.

Krystal never made it off the island and her body is stranded there while recovery efforts are stalled by deadly conditions and the risk of more eruptions.

Stephanie, an aspiring actress, and Mr Browitt are in induced comas in Auckland and Christchurch hospitals fighting for life from their horrific burns.

Ms Browitt is by Stephanie’s bedside and was on Thursday trying to have her husband and daughter flown to The Alfred Hospital in Melbourne.

Krystal’s boyfriend Daniel Czimmermann also rushed to New Zealand in the hope of finding her among the injured, but has now heard the worst.

The veterinary nursing student worked part time at Woolworths after graduating from Kolbe Catholic College in Greenvale in 2016.

The family’s neighbour in the outer north Melbourne suburb of Craigieburn ‎Supreetha Konda described them as ‘beautiful people both inside and out’. 

‘They are very loving, caring, supportive and very good humans,’ she wrote.

‘I can’t imagine what my dear friend Marie is going through now.  I am still praying and hoping their younger daughter Krystal will be found.

‘This Family was so excited to have a good holiday break this time but I can’t imagine Mother Nature can be so cruel to them.’   

Ms Konda told Seven News her young neighbour said they would bring in the holiday season together upon her return to Melbourne. 

‘She was like ‘I’m going on a holiday. We’ll be back soon and celebrate Christmas together.”

A GoFundMe page has been set up to support the Browitt family, which has so far raised more than $44,900 of its $100,000 goal.

‘They need all our thoughts and prayers and most importantly financial help to cope with this ordeal,’ the fundraiser reads.

So far 10 Australians are confirmed dead or presumed dead, with their bodies either in hospital morgues or still on the island.  

Julie Richards, 47, and her daughter Jessica, 20, from Brisbane, were identified before their relatives were told by police on Wednesday morning.

The pair were touring the volcano on Monday as part of a cruise holiday around New Zealand.

Jessica was a promising Australian rules player and a veterinary science student at the University of Queensland’s Gatton campus.

Former Queensland MP, John Mickel, a friend of Ms Richards’ brother Michael, said: ‘The family are united in grief.’

‘You live in hope it’s not going to be your loved one’s name that comes up,’ he said in a press conference.

‘But the hope was snuffed out this morning with the message from the New Zealand police.’ 

Adelaide schoolgirl Zoe Hosking, 15, and Gavin Dallow, 53, were on a tour of White Island on Monday with the girl’s mother Lisa Hosking when the eruption started.

Ms Hosking was injured but her husband and daughter were killed, bringing the number of Australians confirmed dead to four – with many others still missing.

Mr Dallow’s body was identified by police from the five bodies recovered from the island, while Zoe’s body is believed to be one of six recovered by specialist soldiers deployed to the island on Friday.

Distraught family had clung to the small hope the pair made it off the island and were recovering with her, but learned the terrible news on Wednesday afternoon.

‘We mourn the loss of Gavin and Zoe. Gavin was a wonderful son and brother,’ a family spokesperson said in a statement.

‘We’ll miss him at the cricket and we’ll miss him at the football. He was a generous man, always helping his family and his community.

‘Our hearts break at the loss of Zoe at such a young age.

‘We know her loss will also devastate her school community and the local Girl Guides, of which she was an active member.’

Ms Hosking’s brother David flew to New Zealand after the disaster and scoured hospitals for the family, eventually finding her.

The petroleum engineer is believed to have suffered burns to 60 per cent of her body and is one of two dozen who are fighting for life in hospital. 

Karla Mathews and Richard Elzer and their close friend Jason Griffiths also perished in the eruption as they trekked around the island.

Ms Matthews and Mr Elzer’s bodies are still on White Island and Mr Griffiths died in hospital surrounded by six friends they were travelling with.

The nine mates boarded Ovation of the Seas in Sydney last week, spending five memorable days together at sea enjoying the luxury ship’s high-end restaurants, fancy bars and outdoor adventure parks.

Mr Griffiths, 33, was pulled from the island by rescue teams, suffering burns to 80 per cent of his body. He was taken to hospital in a critical condition, but later died. 

The remaining six travel companions had no idea if their friends made it off the island alive, until their frantic search for answers came to a tragic end. 

A fundraiser has attracted almost $20,000 in donations, including from Stephanie and Mr Browitt’s workmates, Krystal’s gym, and devastated strangers.