New Zealand conservation authority confirmed that a lahar has burst forth from Mount Ruapehu Sunday afternoon but with no immediate threat to local residents.

Department of Conservation (DoC) staff said they have been monitoring Mount Ruapehu crater lake, which is located in central North Island, after alarms went off Sunday morning, signaling a lahar was imminent.

DoC said bursting of the crater lake has been long anticipated and the wild weather in the North Island may have brought on the current activity.

The crater lake of Mount Ruapehu has been rising steadily, since the last eruptions in 1995 and 1996.

Ohakune police have confirmed that there is activity on the mountain and are setting about closing highways in the area and getting helicopters in the air.

The response plan triggered involved officials from the Department of Conservation, Civil Defence, Police, Horizons Manawatu and the Ruapehu District Council.

The chairman of the Regional Council, Garrick Murfitt, said all access roads to the mountain have been closed, motorists are being turned away.

He said there are now no needs to evacuate residents in the region.

Source: Xinhua