An October elevator malfunction in a Colorado gold mine that killed a tour guide and stranded nearly two dozen people underground for hours was caused by “operator error,” Teller County sheriff’s officials said Wednesday.
The elevator breakdown, which happened while it was lowering 11 people into the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine, was “not attributed to current mine practices or equipment malfunctions,” sheriff’s officials stated Wednesday on Facebook.
State inspectors from the Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety said Thursday they identified minimal maintenance issues but the mine is in overall good working order and in compliance with regulations.
The cease-and-desist order placed on the mine in October, which prohibited the Mollie Kathleen mine from reopening until the investigation was complete, has been lifted, state officials said. The mine is permitted to reopen in May for the 2025 tourist season.
The death of Patrick Weier, the 46-year-old tour guide, has been ruled accidental and the case has been closed, sheriff’s officials said. He died during the initial elevator malfunction, but law enforcement has not said how.
Emergency crews were able to recall the elevator soon after the malfunction on Oct. 10, bringing the 11 people on board back to the surface. Twelve people who were already in the mine below when the elevator broke were stuck there for roughly seven hours.
The mine elevator experienced a mechanical issue with its cage doors when it was about 500 feet deep in the mine, officials said in October.
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 completed the safety inspection of the mine on Dec. 6.
The crews checked ground conditions, mine ventilation, radios and phones, fire safety materials, the elevator, certifications and more, state officials said.
One section of the bell system cable was inoperable during the inspection about 400 feet into the shaft, state officials said in the inspection report. It will need to be repaired before reopening.
State officials also noted multiple damaged ladder rungs that need to be replaced but said “there no longer exists an imminent or substantial danger to the public or employees.”
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