The maker of a plane which crashed in Fox Glacier, killing nine people, is warning against putting more powerful engines into the planes.

The Miners' Solidarity Day will see the Warriors play Newcastle tomorrow in a match to remember the victims of the tragedy.

A South Island couple unable to escape Cairns before Cyclone Yasi hit overnight felt so safe in their hotel they slept, then watched the huge storm from their balcony.

There's a "strong possibility" Pike River Coal mine contractors will never receive money owed to them, a receiver says.

Police made the "wrong call" to raise hopes for a rescue after the first Pike River Coal mine explosion, Grey District Mayor Tony Kokshoorn says.

All 29 men lost in the Pike River disaster died within minutes of the first blast in the West Coast coal mine, a coronial inquest into the disaster has concluded.

The man charged with overseeing the Pike River mine smelled diesel or exhaust in the air about the time it was hit with an explosion that killed 29 men.

The 29 workers who died in the Pike River disaster would have died within minutes of the original explosion at the West Coast coal mine, a coronial hearing in Greymouth has heard.

John Key has defended police in the wake of a damning report and a much criticised decision to end recovery efforts at Pike River Coal mine.

The West Coast's Fox River burst its banks today, forcing some residents and bach owners to evacuate, some of them carrying off possessions they wanted to save.

The father of a miner who died at Pike River has accused police and the Government of withholding information that shows bodies may be recovered intact from the explosion-hit coal mine.

Sealing the Pike River mine could see vital evidence lost, the lawyer for the families of those killed says.

Liz Light explores Westport; a town that owes its prosperity to the earth's bounty.

A police staff member wound up in a spat with Grey District mayor Tony Kokshoorn after finding him "wired" with a television recording device.

Police Commissioner Howard Broad has announced police are all but giving up hope of recovering the remains of the 29 Pike River miners.