Emergency Services respond to explosion at West Coast coalmine

19 November, 2010 - 18:49

Police and other emergency services are responding to a possible explosion at a West Coast, New Zealand, coal mine.

Communications are difficult at the scene which is at the remote Pike River coal mine, 50km north east of Greymouth.

Early indications are that there was a power outage at the late this afternoon. Police say an electrician went into the mine about 3.50pm to investigate the outage and discovered a loader driver who had been blown off his machine about 1500 metres into the mine shaft.

There are 36 tags still on the board at the mine. Those miners have not yet been heard from. No further details are available.

A specialist mine rescue team, Police and other emergency services are at the scene and information will be updated as it comes to hand.

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