Police have released the first images of what they believe is one of many campsites where a New Zealand father on the run hid with his three children for years. Two of Tom Phillips' children were found at the site in the Waikato region on Monday, hours after he was killed in a shootout with the police. Police found them with the help of the third child, who was with Phillips when he died. They said the children are 'doing well', but will take time to recover from the ordeal. Shortly before Christmas in 2021, Phillips disappeared with his children – Jayda, Maverick, and Ember, then aged eight, seven, and five, respectively. Police believe he did so after losing legal custody of them. Phillips had 'no regard' for the children's safety and 'quite literally put [them] in harm's way', Police Commissioner Richard Chambers told the media on Tuesday, adding that they are now in the care of authorities. A stash of firearms and ammunition were also found at the campsite, which is surrounded by dense vegetation. Two quad bikes are pictured parked among trees. By the time authorities arrived at the site, the search for the two children had been underway for nearly 12 hours. In the early hours of Monday, police responded to a report of an attempted burglary at a rural farm supply shop in the small town of Piopio, where they entered into a shootout with Mr. Phillips. An officer was seriously injured after Phillips fired at him with a high-powered rifle. Authorities are now trying to understand how Phillips managed to evade capture for nearly four years and how he accessed firearms. The children's mother expressed relief that their ordeal has ended but shared her sadness about how events unfolded.