Headframe to topple Saturday
Public warned to stay off Con Mine property
Shane Magee
Northern News Services
Friday, October 28, 2016
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
The Robertson Headframe has a terminal date with gravity set for Saturday evening.
The general manager of Miramar Mining Corporation stated in an e-mail a controlled explosion will topple the building at the former Con gold mine between 4:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. on Saturday.
"As the next phase of decommissioning the structure requires the use of explosives, we urge all those wishing to observe the event ... to remain outside of the mine lease boundaries," Scott Stringer wrote in an e-mail on Thursday.
Explosives will weaken the steel frame, forcing it to fall northward.
"Please keep in mind that viewing areas are limited, however safe viewing of the event may be observed from the Robertson or Rasmussen Road areas," Stringer stated.
Stringer stated guards will ensure everyone is a safe distance away. Once the building is on the ground, the remnants will be cleaned up and hauled away.
NWT Mining Heritage Society president Walt Humphries has long advocated for saving the structure, which is the tallest in the territory.
"I'm deeply disappointed in the city and the GNWT," Humphries said Thursday, referring to failed efforts to get governments to save the structure over the past few years.
He doesn't plan to watch the demolition Saturday, comparing it to watching a car crash.
"To me, it's going to be a very sad day. I hate to see it go and people are going to miss it when it's gone," he said.
The demolition of the near 25-storey tower brings to a close not only frequent efforts to preserve it but a chapter of the city's mining history.
Con Mine began production in 1938 and included a townsite for workers at the mine. Later, Giant Mine was built further up Yellowknife Bay, with both helping to contribute to the establishment of the city.
Dropping gold prices in the 1960s saw Con operate at a lower profitability margin, historian Ryan Silke previously told Yellowknifer. When the price rose in 1971, it provided mine owner Cominco a reason to invest in the mine to boost production.
Enter the Robertson Headframe: It sat atop a shaft plunging about 5,400 feet underground, reaching two gold ore zones. It replaced an older system of two shafts and network of underground tunnels considered inefficient.
Work on the shaft began in 1973. After $20 million and four years of construction, the shaft and headframe were done.
The mine closed in 2004, and Miramar began reclamation work at the site. The approved reclamation plan requires demolition of the headframe.
The C-1 headframe over the first shaft, sunk to mine for gold in the 1930s, was pulled down in 2010 with little fanfare. But the iconic red and white Robertson shaft has become a landmark of sorts for people in the city.
"That thing has been there longer than I've been alive. It's always been part of the skyline in my life," Silke said Thursday, noting he's the son of a man who worked there for about 30 years.
The Robertson Headframe is a dominant feature in the city skyline and has been used as landmark to orient people in the city and the region.
"It sat there as a reminder of both the good and the bad of the mining industry here," said Silke, who told Yellowknifer he plans to watch it come down.
"All we can do now is give it a good send-off," Silke said.
