Elevator door was 'broken' during Colorado mine tour accident that killed 1 and trapped 12
Investigators were trying to figure out Friday what led to an elevator accident at a former Colorado gold mine that killed a tour guide
DENVER (AP) — Investigators on Friday were trying to figure out what led to an elevator accident inside a former Colorado gold mine that killed a tour guide, injured four others and left a separate group of 12 people trapped for hours at the bottom of the tourist attraction 1,000 feet (305 meters) beneath the surface.
The elevator was descending into the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine on Thursday in the mountains near Colorado Springs. At around 500 feet (152 meters) down, the person operating the elevator from the surface “felt something strange" and stopped it, Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell said.
The elevator was still operable, and those on board were brought back up within 20 minutes, the sheriff said. A door on the elevator was broken when it was raised.
“We don't know if the door malfunctioned or not or if something else occurred. There's a lot that goes on in these little elevators,” he said. “We just know that the door was broken somehow.”
