\u201cI looked over my shoulder to see a huge plume of ash and debris blasting out of the volcano and racing towards us,\u201d recalls Brian, then 27. \u201cLuckily, we were only a few hundred metres from the helicopter and shoreline, so I told my passengers to run for their lives and get into the water.\u201d<\/p>\n
As a terrified Brian reached the end of the jetty, he was hurled into the sea by the force of the eruption. Holding his breath underwater for as long as he could, when he resurfaced, he could see one of the German couples in the water close by, with his other passengers on the jetty, alive but seriously injured.<\/p>\n
Heavy smoke from a volcanic eruption at New Zealand’s White Island. Photo \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n
\u201cI swam back to climb the ladder to help rescue them and the other badly injured survivors who were stumbling towards me,\u201d Brian recalls.<\/p>\n
Of the 47 people on the island that day, 22 died and 25 were injured, many suffering catastrophic third-degree burns. A tour boat that had left the island before the eruption<\/a> came back to transport the injured on a 90-minute mercy dash to the mainland.<\/p>\n After an anxious wait, Jolien, then 21, was relieved to be reunited with her partner at Whakat\u0101ne Hospital. Although he escaped with just a strained back muscle and a cut on his knee, the emotional toll of the day caught up with him once they returned home.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s when I finally broke down,\u201d he shares.<\/p>\n Brian, now 33, says the devastating events were tough on their still-new relationship.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019d been together less than a year when the disaster happened, and we lost our innocence and the fun of a young romance on that day.\u201d<\/p>\n There were more challenges ahead, with Covid hitting a few months later. Although the couple decided to stay in Aotearoa, Brian\u2019s work as a pilot quickly dried up. It wasn\u2019t until 2023 when he returned to flying that he finally started to \u201cfind myself\u201d again.<\/p>\n Thankfully, the couple\u2019s loving bond navigated them through the tough times and two years ago, Brian popped the question to Jolien, now 27.<\/p>\n In Belgium, most couples marry in a short ceremony at their local city hall, which in the couple\u2019s hometown is a stunning medieval building.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The lovebirds tied the knot in their romantic home city of Bruges, Belgium. Photo \/ Woman’s Day<\/p>\n