Colorado investigators blame 'operator error' in deadly 2024 gold mine incident
An incident at a former Colorado gold mine that killed a man and trapped a group of tourists for hours underground in 2024 was caused by "operator error," authorities said.
Investigators determined that the incident at the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine near the town of Cripple Creek was "not attributed to current mine practices or equipment malfunctions," the Teller County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement Wednesday. The sheriff's office also ruled that the death of Patrick Weier, 46, a tour guide at the mine, was accidental.
The incident occurred on Oct. 10, 2024, and it was initially believed to have been caused by an elevator malfunction that "created a severe danger" for a tour group, according to Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell. State and local authorities responded to the site and rescued 11 people, including two children and four people who sustained minor injuries, with a trolley system.
Another 12 people, including Weier, were stuck at the bottom of the mine — which is about 1,000 feet deep — for about six hours, Mikesell said at the time. The incident occurred at the end of mine's tour season, which runs from May through the second weekend in October.
The incident raised questions about the mine's practices and equipment. A cease-and-desist order was placed on the tourist mine following the incident, according to the sheriff’s office.
The Colorado Department of Labor and Employment’s Division of Reclamation, Mining, and Safety, the Division of Oil and Public Safety, and the Mine Training and Safety Program concluded their safety inspection of the mine last month, according to a final report released Thursday.
Safety inspectors concluded in the report that the "Mollie Kathleen tourist mine is satisfactorily compliant with the provisions of the Regulations for the Mine Safety and Training Program for Tourist Mines (Program) and there is not an imminent or substantial danger to the public or employees."
The cease-and-desist order has also been lifted, allowing the mine to resume operations for the 2025 tourist season, according to the sheriff's office. It was not immediately known when the mine would reopen. On Thursday, the mine's website still said it was closed until further notice.
What happened at the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine?
The elevator was carrying a separate group of tourists when it malfunctioned about halfway down the mine shaft, according to Mikesell. The elevator was stuck briefly before it returned to the surface with 11 people aboard.
Meanwhile, another group of 11 other tourists and Weier remained stuck at the bottom of the mine until the elevator was repaired. About six hours later, Mikesell said the tourists were brought back four at a time.
"We were able to put together a plan that worked, and that plan was to bring them up through the elevator system," Mikesell said at the time. "We had other plans that were in place, and luckily, we didn't have to use any of those."
Authorities avoided using an alternative rescue plan that involved dropping a harness down the mine shaft with a rope and bringing people up one at a time.
While authorities were conducting rescue operations, Mikesell said the tour group was safe and communicated with emergency responders. They also had supplies like drinking water, chairs, and blankets.
Accidents at tourist mines are considered rare
The Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine opened in the 1800s and closed in 1961, but still conducts tours, according to the mine's website. It is located near the town of Cripple Creek, about 45 miles southwest of Colorado Springs.
"Rather than closing down the mine completely, a decision was made to continue tours," the mine's website states. "Tour revenues were used to maintain the mine in safe operable mining condition."
The family-owned business has operated tours at the mine for more than 50 years, with only one previous safety incident in which people were trapped in the elevator in the 1980s, Mikesell said. Before the October incident, state authorities said inspection reports for the mine were satisfactory and that inspectors found no observed violations or hazards.
Mine safety at tourist mines is regulated by state and federal authorities, according to the Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining, and Safety. In addition to annual inspections, the department said regulations require mine operators of tourist mines to conduct daily inspections.
"Overall Colorado tourist mines have an excellent safety record," the state department said in a statement last October. "Each year thousands of tourists safely visit these mines where they learn about the importance of our state’s precious natural resources and the history of mining in Colorado."
But federal authorities have warned that active and abandoned mine sites still "pose serious risks to people untrained and unfamiliar with the site." According to the U.S. Department of Labor, there are about 14,000 active mines and about 500,000 abandoned mines across the country.
The Department of Labor said in 2022 that dozens of people are injured or killed each year while exploring, swimming, or playing at mine sites.
Contributing: Ahjané Forbes, Paste BN; Reuters