30 Pike River family members will travel the furthest into the Pike River drift they have ever been allowed.
The journey to the 170m seal – the furthest point anyone has been into the drift since 2011 – will take place tomorrow morning from 9am and will be the last chance for families to enter the drift before full recovery of the 2.3km tunnel begins. Media is welcome to attend.
Pike River mum Sonya Rockhouse says the day will be emotional. “This will be the closest most of us will have been to our loved ones since that awful day in 2010.
“I don’t know how I’m going to feel when I’m there. Right now I’m nervous about it but also proud that Anna and I have been able to help the families get this far.”
For Pike River widow, Anna Osborne the moment is particularly important – after the event she will be heading into stem-cell treatment for her lymphoma cancer. “I’m starting treatment the next day, but the thought of standing that close to Milt and of how far we have come will give me strength. I wouldn’t miss that for the world.
“This has been a long long journey, but we have fought hard for truth and justice and it is almost here. That’s something we need to thank all of New Zealand for, without that support our men and the evidence that could get them justice would have been locked away forever.”
