Sullivan mine

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Sullivan Mine is an underground mine located in Kimberley, British Columbia, Canada; it has a complex orebody, made up primarily of zinc sulfide, lead sulfide, and iron sulfides.

The deposit was discovered in 1892 and acquired in 1909 by the Consolidated Mining and Smelting Company of Canada (later Cominco Ltd. and Teck Cominco). The mine's economic success resulted largely from Sullivan's 1916 development of the differential flotation process that allowed separate recovery of lead and zinc concentrates in the milling process. This technology, developed by Trail operations at Sullivan, has been used worldwide for various types of ore bodies. In its lifetime, the mine produced ore containing over 17 million tons of zinc and lead and more than 285 million ounces of silver, which were together worth more than $20 billion. After 92 years of active production, the Sullivan Mine was closed in 2001. Currently, Teck Cominco is undergoing an extensive decommissioning and reclamation process at the site.

[edit] Mine accident

On May 17, 2006, it was announced that four people died in an accident at the decommissioned mine. Douglas Erickson, a contractor who was doing routine water sampling, was overcome by Lack of oxygen. Two days later, after being reported missing, he was found by Teck Cominco employee Robert Newcombe, who was able to dial 9-1-1 before also succumbing to the gas. The two paramedics that responded, Kim Weitzel and Shawn Currier, also died in the oxygen-deprived atmosphere of the shed. The bodies were recovered by firefighters equipped with oxygen masks. This was not a Hydrogen Sulphide atmosphere leading to the deaths of these four people, but an environment totally devoid of oxygen.[1]