Two Australian brothers were crushed under 100 tonnes of ice when an ice shelf fell on them at the Fox Glacier n New Zealand.

Ashish Miranda, a 24 year old aerospace engineer and his younger brother, univeristy student Akshay, 22, had left a viewing platform to take a closer look at the glacier when the shelf collapsed, showering them with huge blocks of ice, some the size of small cars.

Their parents Ronnie and Winnie were forced to watch as tonnes of rubble, covering an area of around 100 feet, enveloped their only children.

The young men had been on holiday with their parents from Melbourne when they visited the glacier, in NZ's Southern Alps on Thursday.

While their parents remained safely on the platform Ashish and Akshay ignored the warning signs to climb over a rope safety barrier and walk up to the glacier, believed to be about 180 feet high.

Inge Scherl, an Austrian tourist who saw the shelf collapse told Sky News: "We heard a very big noise and then we saw all the ice falling down."

Ashish's body was recovered some hours after the accident, which happened late on Thursday. But the search for Akshay has been delayed because conditions are too dangerous, police say.

Constable Tony Le Sueur, of Hokitika police said local guides quickly arrived at the scene but were powerless to help. A digger helped search for the bodies as long as it was safe, but managed to find only one, he said.

Jo Macpherson, area manager of the Department of Conservation said the second body was believed to be trapped at the base of the glacier.

"It's very dangerous still. There is no way the police will put anybody on the ground under the ice shelf the way it's looking at the moment," she said.

Tim Groser, the Conservation Minister said the parents of the brothers faced a "tragedy of almost unimaginable proportions" but emphasised there were extensive safety procedures in place, which were reviewed annually.

'We're dealing with a situation that is a highly dangerous and dynamic natural environment involving rock, ice and rivers," he said.

There would always be risk, but also "some responsibility on the part of these individuals who go into these areas," he added

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