PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Mining major Rio Tinto has temporarily suspended operations at its Kennecott copper/gold/silver mine, in Utah, following a 5.7 magnitude earthquake.
The company has reported that all employees had been accounted for and evacuated from potential risk areas, while initial assessments have identified limited damage to the operation, or risk to the surrounding community.
Rio noted that a detailed inspection was being conducted.
“The safety of our employees and wider community is our first priority and having ensured that all our employees are safe and the operations are shut, we are now working with the local emergency services and regulators to ensure the asset is safe before resuming any operations,” said Rio’s copper and diamond CEO, Arnaud Soirat.
Kennecott employs nearly 2 000 staff, and the operation produced some 51 400 t of refined copper during the last quarter of 2019, and 184 600 t during the full 2019.