One person died and 23 were rescued after an elevator malfunctioned at the Mollie Kathleen gold mine in Colorado | US news

On By Yukito

One person died and twenty people were rescued after an elevator malfunctioned at a Colorado gold mine tourist attraction.

The incident occurred around noon at the Mollie Kathleen gold mine in Cripple Creek.

The sheriff’s office said all 23 people trapped were rescued.

One person on board died as a result of the incident, but it has not yet been revealed how they died. Four other people suffered minor injuries.

A problem with the elevator was reported, prompting a rescue attempt.

Initially, 11 people were rescued, including two children, while the remaining 12 were stuck in a shaft at the bottom of the mine.

A group of twelve people were trapped at a depth of approximately 300 m (1,000 ft) for six hours.

The trapped group was already underground when the elevator broke down as they were descending with another 11 people.

Radio contact was established with the 12-person group that included the guide, and Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell said they had water, blankets and chairs.

“Everyone is in good spirits. We fed them pizza. This is what they wanted,” Mikesell said during the rescue.

The elevator in the mine shaft, which was carrying a group of tourists, broke down. Photo: AP
Picture:
A shaft lift carrying tourists failed, causing death and injury to others. Photo: AP

To give them peace of mind, they were not told that anyone had died, only that there was a problem with the elevator.

In case the problem cannot be removed, firefighters have been put on standby.

On Thursday evening, the sheriff said they still didn’t know what caused the problem, but engineers checked the elevator before sending it down to pick up the group.

He declined to identify the person who died.

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The mine has been a tourist attraction for 50 years. Photo: AP
Picture:
The mine has been a tourist attraction for 50 years. Photo: AP

The former mine is located about 110 miles south of Denver and has been operating tours for 50 years.

It opened in the late 19th century and closed in 1961.

The descent takes about two minutes, and visitors can see gold veins in the rock and ride an underground tram, according to the mine’s website.