Police have notified the families of the 29 Pike River Mine victims that imagery work from a new borehole has captured evidence of further human remains.

The images have been reviewed by pathologists and show two sets of probable human remains and one set of possible human remains.

The images were taken in the area of One West Mains, which is the western extremities of the mine workings. It is believed that five men were working in this area. 

“My thoughts are with the families and loved ones of the men lost at the mine as they process this latest discovery. The search for answers over the last 11 years has been a long and painful journey for the families and my heart goes out to them,” Detective Superintendent Peter Read says.

This is the second set of images to capture evidence of human remains, since the additional borehole drilling programme started in June this year.

The drilling programme was originally scheduled to end on 17 December but Police this week received approval for the drilling of an additional borehole at the mine. The drilling programme will therefore now continue into the New Year.

“Approval for the additional borehole was sought following a site visit and scoping work undertaken by geotechnical engineers in early December, which identified a suitable additional drilling site,” Detective Superintendent Read says.

“It is imperative that we do everything possible to provide the men’s loved ones with as much knowledge as possible about what happened that day, and the drilling of the additional borehole will give Police valuable information to assist the investigation into the cause of the explosion.

“I would again like to acknowledge the Pike River Recovery Agency staff and the drilling and mining experts who have supported the borehole drilling operation. Their assistance has been invaluable to Police staff working at the mine site since February 2019.”

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