Underground mining is resuming after a pause of almost three weeks at an area of the Diavik diamond mine reportedly affected by subsidence.
On the evening of July 4, workers at the NWT mine – some 300 km northeast of Yellowknife – reported subsidence on an access road leading to A154, which was formerly an open pit and is now an underground mining operation beneath the pit.
A day later, mine owner Rio Tinto said work had been suspended at A154 “as a precautionary measure.” The company said all workers were safe.
Rio Tinto added it needed to develop “a better understanding” of the cause of the subsidence, which means the ground sinking as material beneath it shifts.
In a Thursday update provided to Cabin Radio, Rio Tinto said it had been “working closely with the Workers’ Safety and Compensation Commission” and had received WSCC approval on Wednesday to resume work at A154.
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“We have multiple layers of controls in place as communicated with the WSCC to ensure the safety of our teams,” a Rio Tinto spokesperson stated.
“The surface and underground areas remain under 24-hour monitoring and no further movement has been detected since the event.
“The safety of our workforce remains our main focus and these measures were determined in consultation with Diavik’s internal team, external subject matter experts, and WSCC.”
The company did not state whether the source of the subsidence had been identified or, if so, what the source of the issue was.
The financial impact of the shutdown is also not clear.
