25-07-2025
- General
- Winnipeg Free Press
Winnipegger trapped in B.C. mine for more than 60 hours relieved after complicated rescue
A Winnipeg man who was trapped underground in a northern B.C. mine for more than 60 hours expressed relief and gratitude after his rescue late Thursday.
And Jesse Chubaty's Manitoba relatives are eager to reunite with him.
Chubaty and two co-workers were brought to the surface of a gold and copper mine near Iskut, B.C., about 1,600 kilometres north of Vancouver, Thursday night after becoming trapped Tuesday morning.
DAVE MIDDLETON / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES
The entrance to the Red Chris mine near Iskut, B.C., is shown on Wednesday.
'Thank you everyone for reaching out. What a wild week this has been. Glad to be outta there!' Chubaty wrote in a Facebook post about nine hours after the rescue. 'To all my mining brothers, stay safe down there and to everyone else as well!'
Chubaty, a driller, and co-workers Kevin Coumbs, from Ontario, and Darien Maduke, from B.C., went into a steel refuge chamber after two ground falls occurred in an access tunnel, blocking their exit at the Red Chris mine, which is operated by Denver-based Newmont Corp.
The three men are contractors who work for Smithers, B.C.-based Hy-Tech Drilling. They were stuck about 280 metres below the surface.
Chubaty's grandmother, Helen Chubaty, said she was relieved and excited when she was told Friday morning that her grandson had been rescued and was safe.
'I can hardly wait to see him,' she said from her Winnipeg home, while watching TV coverage of the rescue on a national news channel. 'It's hard when something like this happens, and the communication isn't there.
'We didn't know anything, so in your mind you're always thinking about the worst. Thank God everything worked out good for them.'
She said her 33-year-old grandson, who is from Transcona and is engaged to be married, works as a driller in several provinces, but has a home in Winnipeg.
He's been a driller for about a decade, she said.
'That's his thing. He likes that,' she said. 'Whether he'll still do it, I don't know. I would say that he probably will do it.'
Mark Chubaty, who travelled to Smithers, B.C., from Winnipeg while his son was trapped in the mine, thanked people for their concern, while he deferred comment to Hy-Tech Drilling Friday.
The men were rescued at about 10:40 p.m. local B.C. time Thursday, following a carefully planned and meticulously executed operation, Newmont Corp. head of safety Bernard Wessels told a televised news conference near Iskut.
They had consistent access to food, water and air in the refuge chamber, he said.
Wessels said the workers mentioned that they caught up on sleep while they were trapped.
'We are deeply relieved that all three individuals are safe, and in good health and spirits,' he said. 'We thank Kevin, Darien and Jesse, who have held hope and strength through every moment in this incident. We will never forget the courage they have shown.'
Officials hailed the trio for following safety training, while thanking personnel who were involved in the rescue.
'The most important thing here is having Jesse, Darien and Kevin out safe. It was quite a euphoric evening,' Hy-Tech Drilling president Dwayne Ross told the news conference.
The workers were checked over medically when they exited the mine. Counselling was made available to them.
Wessels said the most important thing for the men was to spend the day with their families.
After flying in camera-equipped drones to confirm the area was stable, rescuers used large, remote-controlled scoops to clear a blockage that Newmont Corp. said was about 20 to 30 metres long and seven to eight metres high.
A team then used a vehicle, equipped with 'fall on protection,' to bring the workers out of the mine one at a time.
The initial ground fall occurred at about 7:45 a.m. Tuesday. Newmont Corp. said the workers, who were more than 500 metres past the ground fall, went to a self-contained chamber with enough food, water and ventilation for an extended stay.
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A second ground fall occurred in the same area at about 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, cutting off direct communication with the workers.
The refuge chamber was about 700 metres from the ground fall. Newmont Corp. said natural air continued to flow toward the chamber despite the ground fall.
Wessels said officials were nervous but remained patient in order to complete the rescue in a safe way. 'Goosebumps and happiness' is how he described the moment the workers emerged.
Wessels said the company is investigating the incident to learn more about what happened and to try to prevent it from happening again.
Chris KitchingReporter
Chris Kitching is a general assignment reporter at the Free Press. He began his newspaper career in 2001, with stops in Winnipeg, Toronto and London, England, along the way. After returning to Winnipeg, he joined the Free Press in 2021, and now covers a little bit of everything for the newspaper. Read more about Chris.
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