Tom Phillips' child warned police of hidden guns at campsite where siblings were found

A child of fugitive Tom Phillips cautioned police of firearms hidden at the campsite the group were staying at before entering yesterday.

Phillips died after a shootout with police after they were called to reports of a burglary in the early hours of Monday.

One of his children, who was with him at the time, then began assisting police.

More than 12 hours later, the remaining two children were located in a remote campground.

Police Commissioner Richard Chambers told Morning Report he was very relieved the children had been recovered safely.

He said police knew there were firearms at the campsite, so they needed to be careful. The child in custody helped police take a safe approach, Chambers said.

Chambers said during the nearly four-year search, police had contacted private organisations and overseas law enforcement for help.

He said the campsite where the children were found was deep in dense bush about 2km away from where Phillips was fatally shot.

They had been there for a little while and there had been some "structures" created, Chambers said.

He said the children have a "long road to recovery", but he had comfort in knowing they're now being supported.

The children had been checked by health professionals and were doing well, Chambers confirmed.

Chambers was in Melbourne for the two Australian police officers killed in Porepunkah yesterday, but returned to New Zealand urgently when he heard the news.

"I got a phone call about 1:47am in the morning... By last night I was very, very relieved at the safe recovery of the children who have been missing for a long time," he said.

Chambers planned to visit the officer who was seriously injured during the standoff with Phillips this morning.

"He spent a good chunk of yesterday in surgery, he's got serious injuries to his head and his shoulder, it was very, very close for him.

"It's certainly my worst nightmare as a commissioner when I get a phone call that we've lost a colleague, it got very close yesterday morning, and I'm relieved he's doing well."

He said the officer was local, and the presence of other police staff likely saved his life.

Police Minister Mark Mitchell said it was a "tragic situation all round".

He was travelling to Waikato to meet the the officer who was critically injured, he told Morning Report.

Mitchell said he will also meet with other police staff while in the area and have a briefing.

He said Phillips was "very unstable" in his thinking and police always had the safety of the children in mind and it dictated what they were able to do.

Mitchell said having an officer shot in the line of duty was one of his biggest fears.

"We lost Lyn Fleming at the start of this year... but very proud of our officers."

Ōtorohanga district mayor Max Baxter told Morning Report he sends his condolences to the Phillips family and the mother of the children.

He said he hoped the injured officer made a good recovery.

Baxter said he was "disappointed" when he first heard Phillips had been shot, but said as the day went on, it became clear it was inevitable.

He said he was not surprised the campsite was hard for police to find.

"If you go off the track by a couple of metres [in that area] you may not find your way back if you're not familiar with the environment," he said.

Child psychologist Dr Sarah Watson told Morning Report the children had gone through so much and will need good quality trauma therapy.

"They will need to have people wrapped around them that they can begin a new life with," she said.

"It's so hard after four years separated and effectively isolated."

Watson said the situation the children have gone through is "fairly unprecedented" both in New Zealand and worldwide.

"There's no real rule book... it's completely new."

She said children are resilient in their hearts, but they will need consistency, calm and people who will look after them in a way that is predictable.

"It's gonna be a tough road for them. We don't know what the narrative they've had about their mother or other whanau has been which makes it even more challenging."

She said they have missed out on years of crucial education.

"I don't know what they've been able to learn so far and also there's the whole social dynamics in the learning environment not just the content of learning either, so it's yet another thing to do in a stepped fashion to not overwhelm them."

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.