Twelve tourists trapped for hours in a disused gold mine in Colorado have been rescued, but one other tourist has died.
The group was touring the Molly Kathleen Gold Mine, a private tourist attraction in Cripple Creek, when the elevator broke.
Eleven other tourists, including two children, were rescued from the mine earlier, four of them with minor injuries.
The hour-long tour takes visitors 1,000 feet (305 meters) down a shaft to the southwest side of Pikes Peak, according to the tour company’s website.
Officials said the lift descending into the gold mine experienced a mechanical problem about 500 feet underground, creating a "significant danger to participants.”
Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell previously said, “This issue has resulted in one fatal crash at 500 feet.” Details were not disclosed.
“There is an issue with the elevator that we have to resolve before we can get them up,” Sheriff Mikesell told reporters.
The rescue team used radio to communicate with 12 other people who were stranded near the bottom of the mine.
“We have chairs, blankets, water and it’s kept at a safe temperature," Sheriff Mikesell said. “It was due to equipment failure. The mine did not collapse.”
Several agencies responded to the incident with heavy equipment, including search and rescue teams.
Hours later, Gov. Jared Polis said he was “relieved that the 12 people trapped in the Molly Kathleen mine were safely rescued.”
According to the tour company’s website, entering an 1890s gold mine is like riding an elevator while listening to the sounds of mining machinery.
Visitors to Molly Kathleen can see several exposed gold deposits in their natural state, according to the website.
The website adds that proceeds from the tour will be used to “maintain the mine in a safe and mineable condition.”
Officials said the last “incident” occurred there in 1986, but did not provide further details.
On TripAdvisor, several people described the elevator as a miner’s “cage.” The BBC could not confirm, but the post said conditions could be harsh and claustrophobic.
William Snare, the mine’s former hoist operator, told the Colorado Springs Gazette that the lift can seat nine to 15 people. He said it took two minutes to descend and four to five minutes to return to the ground.
The mine is named for Molly Kathleen Gortner, the first woman to mine gold at Cripple Creek Gold Camp in 1891.
The tour was scheduled to end this season on Sunday.
