Rebecca Macfie

Reading this book makes it all the more disgusting and outrageous that all charges were dropped against ex-Pike River boss Peter Whittall on 12 December 2013.

On 29 November 2010 an explosion occurred deep within the Pike River coal mine on the west coast of New Zealand's South Island. Two workers made it out (Daniel Rockhouse and Russell Smith), but 29 men aged between 17 and 62 were trapped. There was only a very remote possibility that any of those 29 survived the blast. If they did, they only had 30 minutes of fresh air in their breathing apparatus. 24 November saw a second explosion, followed by two more on 26 and 28 November. The false hope given to the families and the nation was appalling. The lack of justice for those 29 men who were working in an environment with clear breaches of health and safety is shocking and an incredibly sad reflection on the state of things in New Zealand and the failure of our government departments.

'Getting coal out was more important than building a usable emergency exit for the workers' (p. 173). 'The mine's march towards catastrophe was uninterrupted' (p. 173). 'Pike River mine was awash with information foretelling catastrophe, but all those who had the power to act on the warning signs were deaf and blind to them' (p. 176). 'Pleas from men at the coalface for action and improvement went unheard or unanswered' (p. 176). 'Hours had now passed and no more survivors had come out of the mine... The footage provided the men with vivid evidence that they would not be rescuing men alive; their job would be to recover bodies... the explosion had gone on for 52 violent seconds. There would have been nowhere in the tiny grid of roadways for men to escape the ferocity and toxic aftermath of such a blast' (p. 197). 'Department of Labour - the same organisation that had considered Pike a compliant, best-practice organisation and turned a blind eye to its multiple breaches of safety regulations over the previous two years... Carbon monoxide levels were such that a person without breathing apparatus could not survive. The self-rescuers carried by the men provided 30 minutes of air' (p. 208). 'For five days the families and the nation had been encouraged to believe there was genuine hope when there was none... a cast of many had been privy to information that disclosed the likely death of the men, but the families of the 29 had not been told' (p. 222). 'There were numerous warnings of a potential catastrophe at Pike River... the emphasis placed on short-term coal production so seriously weakened Pike's safety culture.. The Department should have prohibited Pike from operating the mine until its heath and safety systems were adequate' (p. 236). 'No one representing the company and its mine said sorry for their part in a calamity that had claimed 29 lives, scarred families and tormented a community' (p. 238). 'The company had demonstrated a total lack of remorse' (p. 239).… (mere)