The bodies of two climbers who died on Taranaki Maunga have been recovered by police.
Richard Phillips (left) and Peter Kirkwood Photo: Supplied
The men died on Tuesday night. Although a formal identification process is still underway to confirm their identities, police said they believed them to be missing engineers Peter Kirkwood (33) and Richard Phillips (46).
They had both worked for environmental and engineering consultancy, Tonkin & Taylor. One of the men had recently become a father.
Officers were liaising with their families.
Richard Phillips and his partner Jac Photo: Supplied
A statement on behalf of the Kirkwood and Phillips families was released through police this afternoon.
The family of Richard Phillips said he was a man dedicated to his family, his partner Jacqueline and their teenage daughters Freya and Indy.
They said the couple had met while travelling in Nepal in 1997.
"Together with their daughters, they made the move from the UK to New Zealand in 2008, and they have brought their girls up to share their love of the outdoors," the family said.
They said the engineering geologist, who had worked for Tonkin & Taylor, had been an experienced climber, hiker, mountain biker and diver who had travelled widely before settling in New Zealand.
"He was the sort of person who could turn his hand to anything, including having a hands-on role in building the family's home on the Port Hills in Christchurch.
"His family appreciate all the support they are receiving as they come to terms with the loss of their most incredible father, partner, son, brother, and friend."
In lieu of flowers, the family requested that donations be made to Taranaki Alpine Cliff Rescue or the Taranaki Rescue Helicopter Trust, who they said had worked tirelessly to bring him home to his family.
The family of Dr Peter Kirkwood described him as a loyal and adventurous soul, who would be missed by friends in the UK, the US, and in Christchurch, where he and wife Kerrie Ann had made their home.
After completing a PhD in geotechnical engineering at Cambridge University, the Welshman had lived in Colorado, before moving to New Zealand in 2018.
"The mountains were central to Peter's life," they said. "He was a skilled and experienced tramper, mountaineer and backcountry skier, who had climbed numerous peaks in the European Alps, the Scottish Highlands, the North American Rockies, and the New Zealand Southern Alps.
"He had recently become a father, and was looking forward to introducing his baby daughter, Elaine Sierra, to the mountains that he and Kerrie Ann loved so much."
The Taranaki Rescue Helicopter and Taranaki Alpine Cliff Rescue staff had assisted police throughout the operation, which had been hampered by bad weather.
