Hundreds more surgeries will be postponed at Middlemore Hospital, due to the ongoing care of the Whakaari White Island patients.

There's ongoing pressure on the hospital’s surgery and critical care departments as a result of the eruption.

Counties Manukau Incident Controller John Cartwright says in the 10 days from the time of the eruption, Middlemore has had to postpone 220 elective surgeries.

He says they expect to continue delaying surgeries at the same rate after the New Year.

That means, by the end of January they expect to have postponed potentially more than 600 surgeries.

Middlemore's Chief Medical Officer Dr Peter Watson says the operating teams are putting in huge hours to do what's needed.

These patients when they are in theatre require theatre teams that are more than double the size of your average operation theatre, in terms of doctors, anaesthetists, nurses."