Portion of Sunsine Mine collapses; no injuries reported

KELLOGG — A portion of the closed Sunshine Mine complex in Idaho’s Silver Valley has collapsed, and there were no injuries. Sterling Mining Co. executive Robert Higdem said some shaft timbers deep in the mine gave way last Thursday, blocking access to a tunnel. There were no workers in the area, and the extent of the damage has not been determined. The mine has been closed since 2008, but Sterling continues to pump out water in case of a future opening. The underground mine was the site of a deadly fire in 1972 that killed 91 miners.