Pike River victims' families enter mine drift

Thursday, 3 October 2019

The Pike River re-entry crew steps into the mine drift. (Video first published on May 21, 2019)

A woman who lost her husband in the Pike River mine explosion says she almost felt him there when she put her hands on the mine's seal.

Anna Osborne was one of 26 relatives of the Pike River mine victims who entered the mine's access tunnel on Thursday.

Family members of the 29 men killed in the West Coast mine on November 19, 2010, went 170 metres into the mine's drift. It was the furthest anyone has been since 2011.

Mine worker Bryan Heslip, Pike River widow Anna Osborne and mother Sonya Rockhouse after travelling 170m up the mine tunnel.

Osborne, Sonya and Daniel Rockhouse, and Jo Ufer were the first to enter the drift on Thursday morning.

Pike River families have stood for the first time at the wall that separates them from the men they lost in the coal mine nine years ago. (First published on October 3, 2019)

* Pike River re-entry team breaks through into mine drift

* New date for Pike River mine drift reopening after failed attempt

Pike widow Anna Osborne and mine worker Scotty Campbell hug at the Pike River mine portal. Family members of the 29 men killed in the West Coast mine in 2010 went 170 metres into the mine's drift, the deepest any had gone. Osborne is about to receive stem cell therapy for lymphoma.

* The road to getting back into Pike River**

Emotions were high as they returned from underground.

Mine worker Scotty Campbell helps Pike River widow Anna Osborne, who is about to receive stem cell therapy for lymphoma, with her gear.

Osborne, whose husband Milton was killed in the mine, said the experience was one she would never forget.

'We were able to put our hands on the seal and I was able to talk to Milton and I almost felt him there,' she said.

Pike River miner Kane Nieper's parents Brian and Barbara Nieper.

'It was the closest I've been to Milton in nine years and it was an experience I will never forget and one I'll always appreciate.'

She shared what she said to her husband through the seal.

Sonya and Daniel Rockhouse embrace as they prepare to enter the Pike River mine on Thursday.

'I just said to him we haven't forgotten. We are coming for you. We are getting closer. And I hope he's proud of what we're doing. We won't give up because they deserve so much better that what they've got. For as long as I live I want justice, I want accountability and I want our men to know they will not be forgotten.'

The National Government had refused to enter the mine, citing safety concerns.

Pike River mine widow Anna Osborne witnesses the tunnel reentry on May 21, 2019.

'We have fought hard for truth and justice and it is almost here. That's something we need to thank all of New Zealand for – without that support, our men and the evidence that could get them justice would have been locked away forever.'

Osborne said she had previously been up to the 30m seal inside the mine's drift.

The Pike River mine reopened for the first time on May 21, 2019, after an explosion in November 2010 killed 29 men.

'It was a small distance but it was very emotional. Behind the seals entombs our men … Going right up to the 170m seal is another milestone in getting closer to where we want to go.'

Sonya Rockhouse said it felt a long way into 170m. She was accompanied by her son Daniel who survived the blast and escaped, saving the life of Russell Smith.

Pike River mother Sonya Rockhouse, Pike River Recovery Agency chief operating officer Dinghy Pattinson and widow Anna Osborne.

'We were always told it was too dangerous to go in and Daniel made the comment it just looks like it did the day he walked out. It was an interesting feeling for me because I had Daniel sitting there knowing that the last time he came out of that tunnel he thought he was going to die and at the same time on the other side of that bloody wall is my other son,' she said.

She said it was a 'huge thing' for Daniel to go up the drift.

'He's a big part of this. He's the last one to see any of our guys alive and he went through all that he did to be able to relay stuff so people could know what it was like up there what the conditions were like. It's very difficult for him. He's got survivors guilt and probably always will have. It's a difficult day for him,' she said.

Brian and Barbara Nieper, whose son Kane died in the mine, said it was an emotional day.

'I was wondering where Kane is, how far away he is from there. It helped to be as close to him as we're going to get for a long time,' Barbara Nieper said.

'You can't have 29 miners lost and no-one being held to account. It's just not right. It's been nine years of hell.'

Brian Nieper said he wanted to get justice for what happened and to get his son's body back. Kane's son was only 16 weeks old when the mine exploded.

'Even if I got a belt buckle back I'd be happy. Like his boy said, he wanted him to come out and give him a decent burial.'

The journey to the 170m seal will be the last chance for families to enter the area before full recovery of the 2.3-kilometre tunnel begins.

Plans for going beyond the 170m seal are still being worked on by the agency and Worksafe.

The Pike River Recovery Agency has been given a $36 million budget to recover the drift.