Manitoba mine fights 2 fires within hours, twice requiring miners to be rescued

Two fires broke out underground in a northern Manitoba mine, the second happening early Thursday morning, just hours after 177 workers were trapped by the initial one.

Hudbay Minerals, which owns the Lalor mine in Snow Lake, about 120 kilometres east of Flin Flon and almost 600 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg, said a piece of equipment caught fire at some point on Wednesday.

All workers were eventually brought to the surface with no injuries reported.

The company, headquartered in Toronto, did not say what time the fire started nor in what type of equipment.

However, David Fenster, a friend of one of the miners, told CBC News he got a text saying they'd been trapped inside a rescue station since around noon.

In a statement Thursday morning, the RCMP said it was informed of the fire around 3:10 p.m. It was reported to have started in a scoop tram, which is similar to a front-end loader but shorter in order to fit in the tighter space of a mine.

RCMP were advised at approximately 1 a.m. Thursday that all employees were out and safe.

After the mine resumed operations, a second fire broke out.

"Unfortunately, in the overnight hours, that same piece of equipment had a flare-up and, once again, our team initiated our emergency response system and evacuated everyone from the mine a second time," a statement from Hudbay said on Thursday.

Mine rescue teams were dispatched underground and extinguished the fire, which is believed to have started in a rear tire, the company said.

"We can also confirm that all employees who were underground at that time were safely brought to the surface."

Hudbay did not say how many workers were in the mine when the second fire broke out.

Snow Lake Mayor Peter Roberts says he met with mine officials on Thursday and says as he understands it, all safety protocols were followed and workers were able to reach safe rooms until they could be evacuated from the mine.

"Nice to know that everybody made it out safe," Roberts said. "The mine rescue teams worked diligently to do what they do best."

He said some workers would have been nearly a kilometre underground.

Mining operations are expected to resume within the next 24 hours, the company's statement said around 9 a.m. Thursday.

Manitoba Workplace Workplace Safety and Health is investigating