ODDS ‘N’ SODS — Breaking through at the Eagle

In the late 1960s I was working in the engineering department of Agnico Eagle Mines’ Eagle Gold mine, a new project near the town of Joutel in northwestern Quebec.

The mine manager there, Harry Pike, was a well-known figure in mining circles, and I enjoyed working with him. We were in the process of preparing the mine for production, and all of the development work was being done by a mining contractor.

The ventilation raise, plans for which I had prepared, was to originate 15 ft. from the main drift at the eastern end of the 1300 level and rise, vertically, past the 1200 level — without breaking through — and then on to break through on the 1000 level.

Based on a work schedule of two shifts per day, seven days per week, and an average advance of 14 ft. per day using an Alimak Raise Climber, we estimated that the raise would pass the 1200 level in approximately 11 days.

Harry and I happened to be on the 1200 level during a routine underground visit at about the time the ventilation raise should have been close to that level.

We later noticed something in the middle of the drift, but, from where we were standing, couldn’t make out what it was. As we got closer, Harry and I saw an Alimak rail coming out of the footwall of the drift. The rail disappeared into the back of the drift and was tacked on to what looked like a 10-by-10-inch beam which had been wedged into place.

Harry wondered aloud (rather colorfully) what was going on. “Stop these guys immediately!” he told me. The contracting crew had broken through the middle of the 1200 level and kept on working as though nothing was wrong.

A rather noisy discussion followed. A surveying error had been made, but the crew was allowed to continue to the 1000 level because we had no way to know if the surveying error was on the 1200 or the 1300 level.

Ten days later, the crew broke through the 1000 level exactly where it was supposed to. The error, we determined, had been made during shaft plumbing on the 1200 level.

Even to this day, I can still see and hear Harry when we saw that Alimak rail in the middle of the 1200 level drift.

— The author, a mining consultant, resides in Beloeil, Que.