One dead, a dozen more trapped in Colorado tourist mine after equipment malfunction

At least one person is dead and others were injured after an equipment malfunction trapped nearly two dozen people underground at a tourist mine in Colorado, Teller County sheriff’s officials said Thursday.

Eleven people were rescued, the sheriff’s office said, and officials are working to get to the 12 people still at the mine.

It is unclear how the one person died, officials said.

An elevator problem at the Mollie-Kathleen Mine was reported early Thursday, triggering the incident and the ongoing rescue attempt, officials said.

The people who remain in a shaft at the bottom of the mine have water and blankets and are in contact with emergency responders, officials said.

The sheriff’s office said those rescued reported neck and back pain, but others said they were traumatized.

Officials said two children were involved, but no further details were released about the people involved in the incident. It was unclear whether the children were rescued.

The last incident at the mine occurred in 1986, officials said.

Sheriff’s officials previously made it clear that the mine did not collapse and that the incident was due to an equipment malfunction.

Teller County is just over 100 miles south of Denver.

According to its website, the mine was scheduled to close Sunday for the season.

It offers hour-long tours where visitors can “descend 100 stories vertically into the earth” to “witness the evolution of surface mining,” its website says.