A wildfire that swept across thousands of hectares of New Zealand’s Tongariro National Park appears to
be coming under control, officials said. Residents are being allowed back into the area following an earlier evacuation.
Rain and the efforts of firefighters have seen “a significant decrease in active fire activity,” Fire and Emergency
New Zealand incident controller Nigel Dravitzki told reporters Monday in
Wellington. The weather has prevented aerial surveillance to confirm the situation, he said.
The fire has impacted at least 2,800 hectares (6,920 acres) of the 79,000 hectare national park, which is a Worl
d Heritage area in the center of the North Island and includes the active
olcano Mount Ruapehu. Firefighters were able to protect tracks and huts
in the area, including those associated with the Tongariro Crossing hik
e, but the area will remain out-of-bounds to visitors for some time, officials said.
Dravitzki said investigators are yet to establish what caused the fire, which started Saturday. The tiny Whakapapa
Village was evacuated late Sunday while a number of hikers were also airlifted from huts.
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About 600 walkers booked on the Tongariro Crossing are affe
cted as well as 100 people who had registered to use huts in the area for overnight stays.
While tourism-related assets have been saved, there has b
een extensive biodiversity damage which will take several weeks to assess, the Department of Conservation said.
Firefighters will remain on site for several days with aerial support on standby.
Everest also announced a new operating structure for new insurance division, which Everest Global Ma
rkets and Everest Evolution, as well as underwriting progra
ms, credit and political risk, surety, and accident & health business lines.
Jason Keen has been appointed CEO of Global Wholesale and Spe
cialty Insurance and will lead efforts to strengthen Everest’s position in the E&S market.
Zaffino said AIG will work closely with the Everest team “to ensure a seamless transition for clients and brokers,” and
the company with continue to work with Everest as a reinsurance partner.