How has mining town coped with disaster?

Press, 3 September 1986, Page 15

How has mining town coped with disaster?

The euphoria of the summer break was shattered on the morning of January 19, 1967, when all of New Zealand heard the news of a serious explosion in the Strongman Coalmine, on the West Coast. Disaster had struck a newly-opened part of the mine, known as Green’s Section; 19 miners had been put there for this one day only. The police imposed tight security and miners’ relatives, along with the rest of New Zealand could do nothing but wait. There were no survivors, however. Fifteen of the dead were married men, and 30 children were left fatherless.

Tonight’s “Then Again,” screening at 8.30 on One,

looks back at this tragic summer’s day, and then returns to the West Coast to see if the impact of the disaster still remains.

Another story looks at what happened to Gerry Merito, the funny man of the Howard Morrison Quartet. There will be original footage of the group on stage at the 1963 Miss New Zealand Show. “Then Again” will also chat with the former Auckland City mayor, Mr Dove-Myer Robertson, about the 1971 visit to the City of Sails by Princess Alexandra. This involved some rather witty after dinner repartee which was captured' for posterity.

An old documentary on the age of majority was the trigger for the last

item in tonight’s line-up, which comes complete with “Then” and “Again” photographs.

“We came across footage of' a 19-year-old couple’s wedding, says the producer, Peter Morritt. “It was picturebook stuff — fresh-faced young people doing the right thing, getting married in church and so on. We decided to find out how they got on.” The “Then Again” team tracked the couple down, but as to the result?

“Watch the programme,” says Morritt.