A person who died at a gold mine in Colorado has been named – as investigators revealed he was a information who labored on the vacationer attraction.
Patrick Weier, a 46-year-old father-of-one, lived in Victor, a neighborhood of lower than 400 folks round 5 miles from the mine.
The circumstances of Mr Weier’s loss of life haven’t been disclosed, however Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell mentioned investigators imagine it was from a mechanical difficulty with the carry reasonably than a medical episode.
Mr Weier was one among 11 folks within the carry on the time, with 4 struggling minor accidents.
They had been introduced up first whereas a separate group of 12 vacationers and a information had been trapped about 300m (1,000ft) down for six hours after the tragedy.
The trapped group had been already underground when the carry carrying 11 folks malfunctioned.
Mr Mikesell mentioned the “very tragic accident” occurred because the carry was about 500ft down the 1,000-ft deep shaft on the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine close to Cripple Creek at round midday native time.
“Currently, we don’t know exactly what happened at 500 feet to cause this,” Mr Mikesell mentioned.
“That’s something we’re working through.”
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Pic: AP
Mr Mikesell mentioned the carry was on its descent when the accident occurred.
A few of the preliminary studies had the carry experiencing a “drop”, however officers do not know if it dropped or bounced, and there was no digital camera to point out what occurred, he added.
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The mine has been a vacationer attraction for 50 years. Pic: AP
The carry is operated from a cab on the floor, he added.
The previous mine is about 110 miles (180km) south of Denver and has been working excursions for 50 years. It opened within the late 1800s and closed in 1961.
The experience to the underside takes about two minutes and guests can see veins of gold within the rock and experience an underground tram, based on the mine’s web site.
