ISKUT, British Columbia (AP) — 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 Tuesday morning.
Kevin Coumbs, Darien Maduke and Jesse Chubaty, contractors for Canada based Hy-Tech Drilling, were in good health and spirits, it added.
“This was a carefully planned and meticulously executed rescue plan,” Newmont said in a statement.
The company, based in Denver, said the rescue operation involved drones and a remote-controlled scoop that dug away a massive rockfall, estimated to be 20 to 30 meters (65 to 100 feet) long and seven to eight meters (22 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.
It said the workers were being supported by medical and wellness teams and their families had been notified.
Newmont said that the men had consistent access to food, water and air while in the refuge chamber of the mine. The mine is in remote northern British Columbia, about 1,000 miles (1,600 kilometers) north of Vancouver.
British Columbia’s 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.
He said 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.