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Pike River Mine disaster
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Pike River Mine disaster
The Pike River Mine disaster was a coal mining accident that began on 19 November 2010 in the Pike River Mine, 46 km (29 mi) northeast of Greymouth, in the West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island following a methane explosion at approximately 3:44 pm (NZDT, UTC+13). The accident resulted in the deaths of 29 miners.
At the time of the initial explosion on 19 November 31 miners and contractors were below ground. 16 miners and 13 contractors were believed to be located at least 1.5 km (1,600 yd) from the mine's entrance, while two miners managed to walk from the mine and were treated for moderate injuries. Subsequent explosions on 24, 26 and 28 November ended any hopes of any further survivors and raised serious doubt that any bodies would ever be recovered.
In December 2012, then-Prime Minister John Key said he would apologise in person to the families of those killed for the Government's weak regulations and inadequate inspection regime. In 2017, the Government established the Pike River Recovery Agency, with re-entry expected by March 2019. It reported to the Minister Responsible for Pike River Re-entry, Andrew Little. Re-entry was expected to cost $23 million NZD over three years. In February 2021, the Agency reported that it had reached a point 2.2 km up the mine access tunnel, the furthest point into the mine that the agency planned to go. The work to this point had cost approximately $50 million. In March 2021, Little stated that it was too difficult and too expensive to go any further into the mine.
The Pike River Mine incident ranks as New Zealand's worst mining disaster since 1914, when 43 men died at Ralph's Mine in Huntly. It also resulted in the country's worst loss of life caused by a single disaster since the 1979 crash of Air New Zealand Flight 901, although it was surpassed three months later by the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake. The accident led to significant changes in occupational safety legislation, with the passage of the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 and the establishment of WorkSafe New Zealand.
The first explosion is believed to have occurred at around 3:44 pm on 19 November 2010. Methane may have accumulated in a void formed during earlier mining activities, then been expelled into the rest of the mine by a roof fall, or it may have accumulated directly in working areas of the mine. It is not known what sparked the explosion, but a working mine contains several possible ignition sources. Two miners managed to walk from the mine later the same day, having been in the access tunnel, or just off it, some distance from the source of the explosion. Both were taken to Greymouth Hospital suffering moderate injuries.
Initial media reports were unclear as to the number of miners and contractors remaining within the mine, with various numbers between 25 and 33 being mentioned. It was eventually ascertained that there were 16 miners and 13 contractors trapped. The names of the missing workers were released on 21 November 2010.
Mine officials noted that every worker carried a self-rescue device providing 30 minutes of air, and fresh air bases were provided within the mine for them to escape to in the event of an emergency; however, the refuges were empty and there was no evidence of miners attempting to reach them. When a borehole was drilled into the area where the miners were thought to be, a level of 95% methane was found, with the remainder primarily carbon monoxide. It appeared there was little chance that any of the miners who may have survived the blast could still be alive. Although families had held out hope that some of the miners may have survived, it was believed by the rescue team that all had been killed by the initial explosion. The mine had not collapsed and air was blowing freely throughout the tunnels indicating that there were no obstructions to survivors leaving the mine or indicating their presence by tapping on pipes or calling for help.
A second explosion occurred at 2:37 pm on 24 November 2010. Police Superintendent Gary Knowles stated that he believed no one could have survived. According to the CEO of the Pike River mine, Peter Whittall, the explosion was not caused by anybody working in or around the mine. The second explosion sent smoke, soot and explosive gases up a mine shaft where a team of rescue staff had been taking samples; the noise of the rising explosion provided them enough warning to get clear, evacuating the area on foot.
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Pike River Mine disaster
The Pike River Mine disaster was a coal mining accident that began on 19 November 2010 in the Pike River Mine, 46 km (29 mi) northeast of Greymouth, in the West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island following a methane explosion at approximately 3:44 pm (NZDT, UTC+13). The accident resulted in the deaths of 29 miners.
At the time of the initial explosion on 19 November 31 miners and contractors were below ground. 16 miners and 13 contractors were believed to be located at least 1.5 km (1,600 yd) from the mine's entrance, while two miners managed to walk from the mine and were treated for moderate injuries. Subsequent explosions on 24, 26 and 28 November ended any hopes of any further survivors and raised serious doubt that any bodies would ever be recovered.
In December 2012, then-Prime Minister John Key said he would apologise in person to the families of those killed for the Government's weak regulations and inadequate inspection regime. In 2017, the Government established the Pike River Recovery Agency, with re-entry expected by March 2019. It reported to the Minister Responsible for Pike River Re-entry, Andrew Little. Re-entry was expected to cost $23 million NZD over three years. In February 2021, the Agency reported that it had reached a point 2.2 km up the mine access tunnel, the furthest point into the mine that the agency planned to go. The work to this point had cost approximately $50 million. In March 2021, Little stated that it was too difficult and too expensive to go any further into the mine.
The Pike River Mine incident ranks as New Zealand's worst mining disaster since 1914, when 43 men died at Ralph's Mine in Huntly. It also resulted in the country's worst loss of life caused by a single disaster since the 1979 crash of Air New Zealand Flight 901, although it was surpassed three months later by the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake. The accident led to significant changes in occupational safety legislation, with the passage of the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 and the establishment of WorkSafe New Zealand.
The first explosion is believed to have occurred at around 3:44 pm on 19 November 2010. Methane may have accumulated in a void formed during earlier mining activities, then been expelled into the rest of the mine by a roof fall, or it may have accumulated directly in working areas of the mine. It is not known what sparked the explosion, but a working mine contains several possible ignition sources. Two miners managed to walk from the mine later the same day, having been in the access tunnel, or just off it, some distance from the source of the explosion. Both were taken to Greymouth Hospital suffering moderate injuries.
Initial media reports were unclear as to the number of miners and contractors remaining within the mine, with various numbers between 25 and 33 being mentioned. It was eventually ascertained that there were 16 miners and 13 contractors trapped. The names of the missing workers were released on 21 November 2010.
Mine officials noted that every worker carried a self-rescue device providing 30 minutes of air, and fresh air bases were provided within the mine for them to escape to in the event of an emergency; however, the refuges were empty and there was no evidence of miners attempting to reach them. When a borehole was drilled into the area where the miners were thought to be, a level of 95% methane was found, with the remainder primarily carbon monoxide. It appeared there was little chance that any of the miners who may have survived the blast could still be alive. Although families had held out hope that some of the miners may have survived, it was believed by the rescue team that all had been killed by the initial explosion. The mine had not collapsed and air was blowing freely throughout the tunnels indicating that there were no obstructions to survivors leaving the mine or indicating their presence by tapping on pipes or calling for help.
A second explosion occurred at 2:37 pm on 24 November 2010. Police Superintendent Gary Knowles stated that he believed no one could have survived. According to the CEO of the Pike River mine, Peter Whittall, the explosion was not caused by anybody working in or around the mine. The second explosion sent smoke, soot and explosive gases up a mine shaft where a team of rescue staff had been taking samples; the noise of the rising explosion provided them enough warning to get clear, evacuating the area on foot.
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