New Zealand's Mt Tongariro erupts

NEW Zealand's Mt Tongariro volcano has erupted for the first time in more than a century, spewing ash and prompting a threat warning for the central North Island.

Police were alerted to the eruption shortly before midnight on Monday (NZ time) by a member of the public who reported seeing "flame-like explosions'' and a cloud of ash coming from "a new hole in the side of the mountain''.

There have been no reports of injuries or damage.

The eruption threw rocks and ash from area of Mt Tongariro known as the Te Mari craters, on the northern side of the mountain near Ketetahi hot springs.

GNS Science volcanologist Michael Rosenberg told Radio New Zealand the situation at the mountain was not yet clear.


Another New Zealand volcano, White Island, also reportedly had a small eruption in its crater lake on Monday.

Civil Aviation Authority meteorologist Peter Lechner told NZ Newswire on Tuesday morning that the volcano "seems to have stopped erupting at the moment".

A thick ash cloud is covering much of the central North Island.

"The general prediction is that ash will travel eastwards over more remote parts of the country," weather analyst Philip Duncan said.

If the wind was to blow towards the north, major population centres such as Waikato, Auckland and the Bay of Plenty could be affected - including the major air traffic routes.

- AAP