Elevator malfunction killed 1 person, trapped 12 others at Colorado tourist mine

Denver (AP) — Investigators were trying to figure out Friday what led to an elevator door malfunction at a former Colorado gold mine that killed one man, injured four others and left 12 people trapped for hours at the base of the tourist attraction 1,000 feet (305 meters) below the surface.

The elevator was descending Thursday at the Mollie Kathleen gold mine near the town of Cripple Creek in the mountains near Colorado Springs when the door malfunctioned about 500 feet (152 meters) below the surface, said Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell.

Victim Patrick Weier, 46, was a tour guide at the mine and father from nearby Victor, Colorado. The exact circumstances of his death have not been released, but the sheriff said it was due to a mechanical problem with the elevator and not a medical problem.

Eleven other people, including two children, who were taking the elevator were rescued. Four of them suffered minor injuries, including back, neck and arm pain, the sheriff said.

Twelve adults from a second group were trapped Thursday for about six hours underground. They had access to water and used radios to communicate with authorities, who told them there was a problem with the elevator, Mikesell said.

Elevator accidents in mines are extremely rare, said Steven Schafrik, an associate professor of mining engineering at the University of Kentucky. They have been used by industry to transport people and equipment since the mid-1800s, he explained, and modern elevators are equipped with safety features that prevent them from falling too high if the elevator breaks. cable.

“Stupid safe,” Schafrik said of mining elevators.

He declined to comment directly on the Colorado accident.

Mikesell said the family that owns the mine has operated it for many years and worked to make it safe.

“Anytime you’re dealing with machinery and a 1,000-foot to 500-foot level in a mine, there can be accidents,” he said.

Mines that operate as tourist attractions in Colorado must designate someone to inspect mines and transportation systems daily, according to the state’s Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety. Mikesell said he did not know the date of the last inspection at the Mollie Kathleen Mine. Records of the inspections were not immediately available online.

Modifications were made to the elevator in 1988, after the mine was transferred to a new owner, according to the mine’s website. A second elevator capable of carrying nine people was suspended below the existing elevator and a new motor was installed to accommodate the increased weight, the website states.

The accident was under investigation by local and state authorities, as well as the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

On Thursday evening, engineers worked to ensure the elevator was operating safely again before bringing stranded visitors back up. This involved sending the empty elevator all the way to the bottom of the shaft to ensure it could rise again without problem. The elevator ride usually takes about two minutes, according to the mine’s website.

The 12 stranded tourists were hoisted in groups of four over a half-hour period, the sheriff’s office said. They were prepared to lift them up with a rope if necessary if the elevator was not usable.

The incident, which was reported to authorities around noon, occurred during the final week of the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine’s season before it closed for the winter, Mikesell said.

The mine’s owners released a statement Friday expressing their condolences and thanking emergency responders. The mine will be closed until further notice, they said.

Cripple Creek is a town of about 1,100 people located in the Rocky Mountains, southwest of Colorado Springs.

The mine opened in the 1800s and closed in 1961, but it still offers guided tours. Its website describes a one-hour tour. It says visitors can see veins of gold in the rock and ride an underground tram.

A woman named Mollie Kathleen Gortner discovered the mine site in 1891 when she saw quartz mixed with gold, according to the company’s website.