Things didn't go according to plan in a Colorado gold mine. An elevator malfunctioned killing a tour guide and leaving a group of visitors trapped.
Now, one of the survivors is breaking her silence. She said that the group never panicked despite being trapped underground for hours. Rhonda Pulse said they all tried to stay calm in the Colorado mine shaft.
"I am really pleased with the way the Teller County Sheriff's Department handled things. They could've told us, but that would've just caused panic. There's no need. There was nothing we can do about it," she told KKTV. "We were inconvenienced. We were uncomfortable. But we weren't .... We were blissfully unaware — we got hungry. We got kind of cold."
She also added, "It was uncomfortable, but we were never panicked or afraid, at least no one ever visibly said are we ever going to get out of here or can we get out type of thing."
Colorado Mine Tragedy
Sadly, 46-year-old Patrick Weier ended up dying in the accident at Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine near Cripple Creek. Authorities are investigating exactly what happened. They believe the elevator glitched causing it to malfunction. Weier and also several others were on the elevator when it came to the surface. The door was broken causing injuries and killing Weier when it surfaced.
Meanwhile, Pulse's group remained trapped underground after the elevator malfunctioned in the Colorado mine. There was a group of 12 adults. They were trapped for about six hours.
"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," Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell said. "We just know that the door was broken somehow."
Ultimately, engineers were able to slowly remove the group. However, they removed the visitors in groups of four for a half hour at a time. Authorities are investigating the Colorado mine to figure out exactly what happened. OSHA was also present after the accident. Previously, the elevator passed several safety tests. It's a very tragic accident. Our thoughts go out to the deceased's family during this difficult time.
