The three miners who are trapped underground at Red Chris mine in British Columbia are behind a wall of debris that is between 20 and 30 metres long and seven to eight metres high, the mine operator says.
A remote-controlled scoop transported from a nearby mine is being used to begin removing debris to restore access, according to a statement from Newmont Corp., the majority owner of the Red Chris copper and gold mine in Dease Lake, B.C.
The workers are staying in a refuge chamber, which is not in the same area as the rockfalls that trapped them. The chamber “is understood to be stable and well-ventilated,” the statement says.
Newmont also said that specialized drones are assessing the geotechnical conditions underground and teams are working to restore a specialized communication system in an attempt to re-establish communication with the miners.
The miners have been trapped since the morning of July 22 when two “fall of ground incidents” occurred at the mine. A “fall of ground” incident in mining involves an uncontrolled and unexpected collapse or detachment of rock or other material from the roof, walls, or face of an underground excavation.
A Newmont spokesperson told The Epoch Times on July 23 that the refuge chamber the workers are in is equipped with food, water, and ventilation, and can support “an extended stay” if needed.
The two rockfall incidents happened at the access point to the underground portion of a non-producing area of the Red Chris mine.
At the time of the first incident, the three workers were working more than 500 metres beyond the affected zone and were asked to relocate to a designated refuge chamber before the second incident blocked the access way, according to a July 23 statement from Newmont.
Following the first incident, communication was established with the workers and it was confirmed that they had relocated to one of the refuge chambers, Newmont said.
After the second incident, communication with the miners cut out, and the mine was temporarily shut down to allow specialist teams to respond to the situation.
“All appropriate emergency response protocols were activated immediately,” Newmont said.
