Three workers who were trapped at a gold and copper mine in western Canada have been rescued after more than 60 hours underground. Red Chris mine operator Newmont Corp. said the three men were safely brought to the surface late Thursday after being trapped underground by two rockfalls on Tuesday morning, per the AP. Kevin Coumbs, Darien Maduke, and Jesse Chubaty, contractors for the Canada-based Hy-Tech Drilling, were in good health and spirits, the company added. "This was a carefully planned and meticulously executed rescue plan," Newmont said in a statement.
The Denver-based company said the rescue operation involved drones and a remote-controlled scoop that dug away a massive rockfall, estimated to be 65 feet to 100 feet long and 22 feet to 26 feet high. Once the fallen debris was cleared from the access tunnel, an emergency response team was able to reach the refuge chamber where the men were trapped and bring them to the surface. Newmont said the workers were being supported by medical and wellness teams and that their families had been notified. The firm noted that the men had consistent access to food, water, and air while in the refuge chamber of the mine, which is located in remote northern British Columbia, about 1,000 miles north of Vancouver.
BC Mining and Critical Minerals Minister Jagrup Brar said in a social media post that he "can't describe the relief we all feel knowing that these three workers are going to be able to go home to their families." The rescue came hours after Newmont's global safety chief, Bernard Wessels, expressed confidence in the rescue, noting that drones had flown over the debris blockage at the mine and found a stable route to the steel safety refuge where the men were sheltering.
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