Focus Live: Human remains discovered at Pike River mine
Images taken deep inside the Pike River coal mine have captured evidence of further human remains, bringing to close the operation, but a criminal probe is ongoing, police confirmed today.
Families of the 29 men who died in the Pike River disaster have been advised that the images have been reviewed by pathologists and show two sets of human remains.
Police say that one of those images was identified as human remains - and the families were told - back in early 2011.
The images were taken in the roadway leading to the Goaf area where it is believed that three men had been working.
The discovery means that eight sets of human remains have now been captured in imaging taken during borehole drilling.
"As I've noted previously, the search for answers over the last 11 years has been a long and painful journey for the families of the 29 men lost at the mine," said Detective Superintendent Peter Read.
"While the discovery of these eight sets of remains is significant, I'm very aware that it still leaves many unanswered questions for the men's loved ones, and my thoughts are with all of the families today."
The redrilling of the borehole brings to an end the borehole drilling operation, which started in early 2019.
The drilling operation has given police "valuable information to inform our investigation" into the underground activity that led to the first explosion, Read said.
"On behalf of NZ Police, I would like to extend my sincere thanks all those who worked on and supported the drilling operation, including Pike River Recovery Agency staff, and other drilling and mining experts," he said.
Detective Superintendent Peter Read at November's press conference in Christchurch announcing bodies had been found at Pike River. Photo / George Heard
While the drilling operation has concluded, police today confirmed that work on the criminal investigation is ongoing.
Some of the Pike River families say the discovery is emotional but will help with closure for many.
Anna Osborne, whose husband Milton died in the disaster, said although the find was not a surprise, it is still hard.
"We've known for a long time there was at least one of our men under borehole 47, but that doesn't make coming back to it any easier," she said.
"What is giving us some comfort is that now, as we get to the end of the project and the mine is sealed, we're getting real answers about what had happened there.
"Just to see that our men fell where they stood and didn't suffer for hours or more is so important."
Pike River miners' family members, Sonya Rockhouse (left), Rowdy Durbridge and Anna Osborne after the recovery team successfully entered the mine in 2019. Photo / NZME
Sonya Rockhouse, who lost her son Ben in the Pike River mine explosion, believes the project has helped her find closure.
"It's strange to think that these are the last images that will come out of the mine, but I feel like we've achieved a lot.
"We've got so many answers and done as much as we can to get into the drift and then see into the mine. I feel like we have done right by Ben. I just hope now that we have done enough to get justice."
Rowdy Durbridge's son Dan was working in an area of the mine where remains have been found and says the latest discovery helps.
"It's a small thing, but knowing the boys didn't die alone in there is a comfort to me," he said.
"This has taken a long time, but it's never too late for justice. I reckon my boy - all the boys I worked with - would be proud of the work done by families and the agency and the police to help put this to rights. We're thankful of that work."
In November, the remains of at least two men, with the possibility of a third, were spotted by a specialist borehole camera, police revealed.
At the time, police said while they know who the six or eight men were who were working in that area of the mine when explosions tore through the West Coast mine, killing 29 men, on November 19, 2010, they were yet to identify the remains.
And a month later, new images taken in the area of One West Mains, which is the western extremities of the mine workings, showed two more sets of probable human remains and one set of possible human remains.
Minister Responsible for Pike River Re-entry Andrew Little, in November, would not be drawn on whether a prosecution was imminent with the police investigation ongoing.
The Pike River Recovery Agency (PRRA) completed its $50m re-entry of the mine's access tunnel to try and recover remains and find any forensic clues last year.
It had been due to permanently seal the mine while police were partway through their borehole investigations.
Pike River Re-entry Minister Andrew Little indicates where the miner remains were discovered last November on a map of the mine. Photo / Mark Mitchell
But some Pike River families who lost loved ones, and had fought for years to try and get authorities to try and find their bodies, launched legal action to try and stop it from happening.
On Friday, November 19, 2010, about 3.44pm, an explosion ripped through the Pike River underground coal mine, followed by subsequent explosions. Two men made it out alive but another 29 were unaccounted for.
The Royal Commission on the Pike River Coal Mine tragedy found that the "immediate cause of the first explosion was the ignition of a substantial volume of methane gas", but could only speculate on what might have triggered ignition.
"The mine was new and the owner, Pike River Coal Ltd (Pike), had not completed the systems and infrastructure necessary to safely produce coal. Its health and safety systems were inadequate," the commission's report said.
WorkSafe laid charges against former Pike River boss Peter Whittall in 2013, but the case was dropped after a $3.4 million settlement was paid – a deal the Supreme Court later said was unlawful.
The money was split between the two survivors and the families of the 29 missing, a total of $110,000 for each man who had been down the mine that day.
Australian company VLI Drilling, which employed three of the men who died, also pleaded guilty to health and safety charges and was fined $46,800.
