Three miners trapped underground in a northwestern B.C. mine have been rescued.
At approximately 10:40 p.m. PT on Thursday, Kevin Coumbs, Darien Maduke and Jesse Chubaty, three Hy-Tech drilling workers at the Red Chris Mine project, were safely brought to the surface after they were trapped early on Tuesday.
“We are relieved to share that all three individuals are safe, and in good health and spirits,” Newmont officials said early Friday morning. The company owns and operates the gold and copper mine.
“They had consistent access to food, water, and ventilation whilst they remained in place in a refuge chamber underground over the last two days. They are now being supported by medical and wellness teams. Their families have been notified.”
Specialized drones were deployed at the Red Chris gold and copper mine to assess the geotechnical conditions underground following the collapse, and Newmont Corporation group head of health, safety and security Bernard Wessels said there were no further collapses since the original incidents.
“We also determined that the route to the refuge station behind the fall of the ground is stable,” Wessels said.
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“We have commenced efforts to safely remove the debris, utilizing a line-of-sight loading equipment or loader.”
The miners, who are Hy-Tech drilling employees, were in a refuge area with food, water and air that can accommodate up to 16 people for 48 hours, which is about 700 metres from the rockfall site, according to Newmont.
The drillers became trapped on Tuesday after two sections of the underground area caved in.
The three drillers spent more than 60 hours underground.
“We will conduct a comprehensive investigation into the incident and will share the lessons learned transparently across the industry,” Newmont representatives said.
Earlier Thursday, Newmont said the debris blocking access to the underground area is estimated to be approximately 20 to 30 metres long and seven to eight metres high.
Newmont said that around 8:30 p.m. PT on Thursday, a specialized line-of-sight scoop successfully cleared the fallen debris from the access tunnel, which allowed the emergency response team to cross the impacted zone to reach the three trapped miners.
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