CRIPPLE CREEK, Colo — One person is dead, four people have minor injuries and 12 people from a tour group are trapped at 1,000 feet underground after an elevator malfunction at a gold mine attraction in Cripple Creek, the Teller County Sheriff said.
Sheriff Jason Mikesell said the accident happened at the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine in Cripple Creek. An elevator trolley was about 500 feet underground when a malfunction occurred, Mikesell said. One person died.
Eleven other people on the elevator were able to get back above ground using the elevator system, Mikesell said. Four of those people suffered minor injuries.
A dozen people are stranded 1,000 feet underground while investigators work to determine exactly what malfunctioned in the elevator system. Mikesell said those people were on a tour of the mine, and one of them is a mine employee.
Mikesell said those people are safe on the ground inside a tunnel. He said they have chairs, blankets and drinking water, and they are able to communicate with crews above ground.
Mikesell said engineers are inspecting the elevator to determine what malfunctioned and see if it's safe to bring those people back up in the elevator. If not, Mikesell said, other contingency plans are in place.
Mikesell said the focus right now is keeping those people calm underground.
"They honestly don't know that we had an issue other than there's a problem with the elevator," he said. "We're just trying to keep down the worry of what's going on so that nobody gets excited."
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis' office said the governor has spoken with local authorities in Teller County and is directing state resources to help with rescue efforts.
"The state has personnel on site and more en route to assess the situation and provide on-the-ground support to local authorities," the governor's office said in a statement. "Specifically, the state has a Field Manager from the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management on the scene, the State Emergency Operations Center is activated and supporting resource requests, a mine rescue team from the Department of Natural Resources is en route, and the Department of Labor and Employment has a conveyances inspector en route."
The attraction's website says "the Mollie Kathleen is an authentic 1890's gold mine" and visitors can "descend 1,000 feet underground."
This is a developing situation. This article will be updated as information is confirmed.
