Latest fromWest Coast

Man shot dead neighbours at close range
A West Coast man is on trial for murdering his elderly neighbour and the man's intellectually handicapped grandson.

West Coast: Digging into the past on the wild West Coast
A new venture in Denniston allows visitors to step back 100 years to experience life in the coal mines, complete with ghostly visions and echoes of another era, writes Jim Eagles.

Pike River families: officials kept footage from us
Families of the Pike River miners have rejected a claim that police leaked previously unseen CCTV footage of the disaster to TVNZ.

Get in or get out, Pike receivers told
On the eve of a preliminary hearing into the Pike River disaster, Grey District Mayor Tony Kokshoorn has warned the collapsed mine's receivers to get in and get the dead miners' remains, or stand aside so someone else can.

Westland: A rare and feathery wonder
In a secret spot, restricted to visitors, Jim Eagles marvels at the elegant, isolated beauty of NZ's only flock of endangered white heron.

Pike River inquiry timeframe too short - Monk
The Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Pike River disaster will need more than 15 weeks to examine key issues, a families' spokesman says.

Prince William meets Pike River families
Prince William has met families of the victims of the Pike River Coal mine disaster in Greymouth tonight.

Pike River sale put ahead of recovery, says victim's dad
The inaction of Pike River mine receivers to venture into the mine has victims' families fearing the worst, says the father of one of the lost miners

Book Review: <i>Hokitika Town</i>
Charlotte Randall is an award-winning New Zealand author whose novels reflect someone utterly in love with the potential of language.

'Unsolicited approaches' to buy Pike River - receiver
A number of parties have already shown interest in buying the Pike River Coal mine, even though it's not yet officially for sale, says Receiver John Fisk.

Pike River families to receive at least $190k
The families of the 29 men killed in the Pike River mine disaster will each receive a minimum of $190,000 from the Pike River Disaster Relief Trust.