Dozen tourists rescued at Colorado gold mine after one killed in accident

Twelve people who had been trapped 1,000 feet below ground for hours were rescued at a historic gold mine in Colorado on Thursday evening after an equipment malfunction during a tour left one person dead, authorities said.

Lt. Renee Bunting, a spokesperson for the Teller County Sheriff’s Office, confirmed the rescue about 7:30 p.m.

The rescue caps off a multihour ordeal that began around noon local time.

Authorities were scheduled to hold a news conference Thursday evening.

The Teller County Sheriff’s Office received a report that an elevator transporting visitors at Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine near Cripple Creek had malfunctioned and stopped at the midway point, according to Jason Mikesell, the Teller County sheriff.

It is unclear exactly what failed within the elevator trolley or whether the people who were on the elevator at the time were going down into the mine or coming up from a tour, Mikesell said. Officials believe the fatality happened during the malfunction. Four other people had minor injuries.

Earlier in the day, 11 other people who were in the elevator were rescued, Mikesell said.

Authorities said that the mine itself did not collapse.

Local and state emergency workers, including a state elevator engineer, were helping with rescue efforts.

The last time a similar episode occurred was in 1986, Mikesell said. He did not elaborate.

Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine stopped operating as a working mine in 1961 but has become a tourist attraction, where miners guide visitors on tours 1,000 feet below the Earth’s surface, according to its website. Visitors can see “exposed gold veins in their natural state,” the website says.

Gov. Jared Polis of Colorado said in a statement that he had spoken with local officials and was sending state resources to assist in the recovery efforts.

“We will do everything possible and assist the county to ensure a speedy and safe resolution of the situation,” Polis said.

The mine was named after Mollie Kathleen Gortner, who became the first woman in the Cripple Creek Gold Camp to strike gold, in 1891.

Cripple Creek, a town of about 1,100 people, is about 20 miles southwest of Colorado Springs.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.