OBITUARIES — Ken Polk

A geologist for more than 30 years, George Kenneth Polk died recently in Oliver, B.C., following a heart attack. He was 63.

A native of North Bay, Ont., and raised in Rouyn-Noranda, Que., he graduated in geology from Queen’s University in 1954. He joined Noranda at Rouyn-Noranda and then worked for the Ventures-Falconbridge group of companies at the Kiena property in Val d’Or, Que., the Tasu mine in British Columbia, and the Giant Yellowknife mine and adjacent Northbelt property in Yellowknife, N.W.T.

At Giant Yellowknife, he formed and directed the special projects group. He was instrumental in defining the faulted northern extension of the main shear structure hosting the Giant orebodies and discovering a new gold deposit in 1967. This deposit was named the GKP zone in his honor.

In 1970, he opened Falconbridge’s first exploration office in Timmins, Ont., and served as regional exploration manager. He later joined Texasgulf, working out of Denver, Colo. Returning to Timmins, he worked with Kidd Creek Mines until health problems forced his early retirement in 1982.