Mines rescue staff will enter the Pike River Coal mine tomorrow - seven months after 29 men died in a series of explosions at the site.
Final checks have been made at the West Coast coal mine this afternoon as staff prepare for the start of the lengthy process.
Bernie Monk, who lost his son in the tragedy, says it has been a long time coming but it is still an exciting time for the men's families.
“It’s something that they’ve been hanging our for for a long time, so me personally, I felt as if it should have been done months ago but anyway we’re not going to dwell on the past we’ve just going to look forward to the future now.”
Re-entry will be done in stages, the first of which involves sealing off 100 metres of the mine, to stop oxygen getting in.
RadioLIVE