New Zealand Mourns 29 Lost Miners

As New Zealand mourns the 29 miners lost in Tuesday’s second explosion, civic leaders are already calling for the mine to be reopened. "A big part of our economy on the west coast is coal and, yes, we want our men back down the mine working,” says the district mayor, “but we want them in a safe environment." Authorities are committed to retrieving the miners’ bodies, but poisonous and combustible gas levels are still so high that the process could take weeks or months, the BBC reports.

Families gathered to meet Prime Minster John Key, and while grief was at the forefront of their emotions, many have also expressed anger that rescue teams were not sent into the mine. The British royal family, Prime Minister David Cameron, and Pope Benedict also sent their condolences, but some families have not given up hope yet: The father of a 21-year-old miner said yesterday, “I am still hoping that somebody can be found that is still alive.”
(More coal mine stories.)