A total of 18 boreholes have been drilled and 20 imaged during the Police investigation – eight drilled and 10 imaged during the first drilling programme in 2021/2022 and 10 drilled and imaged this year.
The remains of up to 12 of the 29 miners have been located
The Department of Conservation confirmed plans for a Pike River memorial pavilion, with construction starting later this year.
Anna Osborne, a Pike River widow, described the memorial as “bittersweet” due to unresolved justice for the 29 men.
A walking track and cycle trail dedicated to the victims opened last year, connecting the Paparoa Track to Pike River.
A Pike River widow says the construction of a permanent memorial is “bittersweet.”
The Department of Conservation has confirmed plans for a memorial pavilion are under way - with construction set to start later this year.
The West Coast mine exploded on November 19, 2010, with the bodies of href="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/pike-river-mine-disaster-more-human-remains-found-12-of-29-victims-now-located-police/V6AWBLKTHFESXE26AUNGZV6O3M/" target="_self" rel="" title="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/pike-river-mine-disaster-more-human-remains-found-12-of-29-victims-now-located-police/V6AWBLKTHFESXE26AUNGZV6O3M/">29 men never recovered.
A tender for the construction is currently out on the Government Electronic Tender Service for submissions, and closes Friday.
On the 14th anniversary of the tragedy, police confirmed that a decision on whether a prosecution would go ahead won’t be made until the first half of this year.
A criminal probe was reopened in 2018 after the Government’s decision to recover the mine’s access tunnel.
DoC‘s Greymouth operations manager Chris Hickford said it’s working with Pike families on the pavilion’s design and construction.
“We are anticipating construction starting on the Memorial Pavilion later in the year, with a completion by the end of summer 2025/2026, but this will be confirmed as part of the tender process,” he said.
Anna Osborne, who lost her husband Milton in the disaster, was originally against the idea.
“I didn’t want anything at that mine until we had done all that we could to try and get our men out of the mine and justice had been settled for the families,” she said.
“But it has dragged on and on and on and nothing seemed to be easy as far as trying to get justice.”
A small group of families are on a committee, helping design the memorial with DoC.
Pike River Mine family members Anna Osborne, left, and Sonya Rockhouse are among those still pushing for a criminal prosecution. Photo / NZME
Osborne said it’s a tricky process, because not everyone agrees with the way things happened.
“We all sort of see things differently.
“I wasn’t involved in the early stages because I was fighting so hard to get that justice and our men home. I was a latecomer to that committee for the memorial because it was important for me that they get it right,” she said.
A walking track and cycle trail dedicated to the victims opened last year.
The 11.5km Pike 29 memorial track connects the Paparoa Track Great Walk to the Pike River, and was created in partnership with DoC, Ngāti Waewae and the families.
Osborne said although she was stubborn at first, the memorial will be a beautiful place when finished.
“It’s just that I really don’t like the thought of our 29 men still being down in the mine and the public walking around them.
“It’s bittersweet for me.”
She said it’s sad that it’s come to this.
“It should never have happened in the first place, and there’s so many things that just keep getting dredged up.”
“I mean, 15 years nearly, and we’re still doing things to try and bring closure to some of the families, but to me, there’s no closure because my husband‘s not home.
“Nothing will replace how I feel about bringing my husband home, that’s what I want.”
Jaime Cunningham is a Christchurch-based reporter with a focus on education, social issues and general news. She joined Newstalk ZB in 2023 after working as a sports reporter at the Christchurch Star.
