An obese tramper died of a heart attack while wedged in an ice crevasse on Franz Josef Glacier, a coroner's court heard.

A young man drowned in the Grey River in an attempt to avoid a drink-driving conviction, Coroner Richard McElrea has told an inquest.

Skydive NZ's John Kerr says he's "absolutely devastated and numbed" by the Fox Glacier crash that claimed the lives of more than a third of his staff.

Transport accident investigators are confident they will find "most, if not all", of the reasons for the Fox Glacier plane crash, despite fire causing massive damage to the aircraft.

The deaths of five local men and four overseas tourists makes it one of New Zealand's deadliest plane crashes.

Better an utter, total if humiliating backdown than a messy compromise that keeps the mining issue alive into election year.

A West Coast village is up for sale for $1m