Donkin coal mine reopens after roof fall in main access tunnel

The underground coal mine in Donkin, N.S., was able toreopenagain on Tuesday after part of the roof fell in over the weekend.

In a brief email statement, the Nova Scotia Department of Labour, Skills and Immigration said the mine owner reported structural issues with roof supports in the main access tunnel on Sunday.

It said a small amount of roof material fell and there were no injuries.

Inspectors were in the mine on Monday and the department has approved a repair plan, which was completed on Tuesday morning, the department said.

No other details were provided and no one from the mine would comment.

Series of roof falls reported

The mine owner, Kameron Coal, stopped operating in March 2020 after two roof falls occurred in the previous month and a number of other roof falls in the previous years.

At the time, the company said it was closing the mine due to what it called "challenging" geologic conditions, but it kept the mine ready to begin operations again in the future.

It reopened the mine last year, after the price of coal rose following the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Since then, the mine has been hit with warnings, orders and fines from the province over various violations of the mining regulationsand it shut down for a couple of weeks in May after an underground fire caused by a conveyor system.

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