TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Some mining crews are returning underground at Vale’s Sudbury mines, but production remains under a temporary suspension the company put in place following the death of a worker on Sunday, a spokesperson said.

The death was the fourth in about a year at the company’s Canadian operations, angering union leaders.

“Some crews are coming back today, but the focus remains on safety, not production,” Vale spokesperson Cory McPhee said in an interview.

“They will be working on areas of safety and risk management.”

The company halted production at all five of its Sudbury nickel-copper mines after Stephen Perry, 47, died in an accident at the Coleman mine.

No decision had been taken on when production at the mines would restart, McPhee said.

He added that the company still had feed for its plants and did not anticipate any impact on production from the temporary stoppage.

Earlier this week, Natural Resources Canada Minister Joe Oliver said he was “obviously very concerned whenever a tragedy like that occurs”.
 

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