New Zealand Premier John Key said yesterday “no stone would be left unturned” to find the cause of a blast that killed 29 men in the nation’s worst mining disaster in almost a century.
He warned it could take months to recover the bodies of the workers who died underground, as the grieving pit community pleaded for the return of their loved ones.
As flags across New Zealand flew at half-mast, Mr Key said the nation was grieving over the tragedy at the Pike River colliery, where miners trapped by an explosion last Friday were confirmed dead after a second blast on Wednesday.
Mr Key travelled to Greymouth on the South Island to be with the men’s stricken families, saying they had legitimate questions about what caused the disaster that government investigators were determined to address.
“This is an inquiry that will leave no stone unturned to ensure that they get their answers as to why their men are not coming home,” he told reporters, adding: “The nation is grieving and mourning alongside them.”
Mr Key said after a sombre meeting with the families he detected resignation rather than the anger seen a day before, when relatives shouted at police and collapsed in anguish after being told their loved ones were dead.
Earlier, the Premier acknowledged the families were desperate for the miners’ bodies to be removed from the pit so they could be given proper funerals.
However, a lethal cocktail of volatile gases remained in the mine and Mr Key said this would delay recovery attempts.
Previous international experience had shown the operation could take “quite some months”, he said.
As messages of condolence poured in from around the world, Mr Key praised the rescue efforts, which some relatives of the miners have criticised after the gas threat stopped emergency workers from going underground.
“It wasn’t for the want of trying, or the willingness, or the courage or the bravery of those that would have gone in to undertake the rescue, it was just the reality of the situation,” he said.
“A mine in this condition is a highly volatile environment, liable to explode at any time without any notice.”
The Pike River Coal board is to meet today to discuss the company’s options and chief executive officer Peter Whittall said he favoured getting the mine going again.