The Miners' Solidarity Day will see the Warriors play Newcastle tomorrow in a match to remember the victims of the tragedy.

There's a "strong possibility" Pike River Coal mine contractors will never receive money owed to them, a receiver says.

Former New Zealand Warriors prop Evarn Tuimavave will lead the Newcastle Knights against his former club on Saturday.

Police made the "wrong call" to raise hopes for a rescue after the first Pike River Coal mine explosion, Grey District Mayor Tony Kokshoorn says.

A woman whose brother died in the Pike River mine is questioning why victims' families were given hope after the first blast when experts say it was not survivable.

The 29 workers who died in the Pike River disaster would have died within minutes of the original explosion at the West Coast coal mine, a coronial hearing in Greymouth has heard.

John Key has defended police in the wake of a damning report and a much criticised decision to end recovery efforts at Pike River Coal mine.

The West Coast's Fox River burst its banks today, forcing some residents and bach owners to evacuate, some of them carrying off possessions they wanted to save.

The father of a miner who died at Pike River has accused police and the Government of withholding information that shows bodies may be recovered intact from the explosion-hit coal mine.

Labour leader Phil Goff has accused John Key of "passing the buck" on whether to permanently seal the Pike River coal mine. Receivers have been given until 5pm today to come up with a plan for stabilising the mine.

Sealing the Pike River mine could see vital evidence lost, the lawyer for the families of those killed says.

A police staff member wound up in a spat with Grey District mayor Tony Kokshoorn after finding him "wired" with a television recording device.

Some Pike River relatives were always resigned to the fact that the remains would never be returned.

The families of the 29 lost Pike River miners say they are "gravely concerned" that the Government and police are abandoning recovery efforts at the mine and are calling for the decision to be reassessed.

The Pike River mine will be sealed and there is little or no chance of the bodies of 29 men killed being recovered in the near future, says Prime Minister John Key. He said it was "not an issue of money or time or commitment."

Closing the Pike River coal mine and handing the land back to the government is the worst-case scenario, according to the company's receiver.

The Pike River Mine will be handed back to the company's receivers, Police Commissioner Howard Broad announced yesterday.

Police Commissioner Howard Broad has announced police are all but giving up hope of recovering the remains of the 29 Pike River miners.