New Zealand Mine: ‘Bleaker by the hour’ Says Police Commissioner (Video)

At a briefing this afternoon, families of the miners were shown video footage that was taken of last Friday’s explosion.

Police Superintendent Gary Knowles (R) speaks to the media while CEO of Pike River Coal Mine Peter Whittall wipes his tears during a press conference. Martin Hunter/Getty Images

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The fate of the 29 miners caught in the massive explosion at Pike River Coal Mine near Greymouth, on the West Coast of New Zealand, becomes grimmer by the hour.

At a briefing this afternoon, families of the miners were shown video footage that was taken of last Friday’s explosion. It showed dust and debris being hurled out of the mine from the impact of an explosion that came from the vicinity of the trapped miners’ work area.

It was a “morale breaker” that left family members “very subdued,” Greymouth District Mayor Gary Kokshoorn told radio Newtalkzb.

Police Commissioner Howard Broad described the miners’ plight as “bleak and getting bleaker by the hour.”

He was addressing a media conference held in Greymouth early Tuesday evening, according to Newstalkzb.

Police Minister Judith Collins, who was also at the conference, said decisions risking the lives of the rescue crew or miners who might be alive should be avoided.

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