Hecla Mining Company is planning to cut 200 jobs at its Lucky Friday silver mine in Idaho. The mine has been shut down for a year by federal investigators. The accident prone mine has caused the company shares to fall 23% to a two year low of $4.25 on Wednesday.
The chief executive officer Phil Baker said on a conference call that there would be a reduction in force at Lucky Friday. Between their employees and contractors, he was sure it would be well in excess of 200 employees.
The mine is supposed to have 275 employees and 100 contractors working onsite. However a series of accidents have been plaguing the mine and the Mine Safety and Health Administration is investigating the situation.
The mine was shut down in mid December when a rock burst injured seven miners. Before than a miner named Brandon Lloyd Gray was buried in rubble and died in November. He was just 26 years old. Prior to that, in the month of April, Larry Marek was crushed when his work area in the mine collapsed.
Mr Baker said that while they were disappointed with the MSHA order to shut down they were considering what action they might take, work has already begun to resume production as quickly as possible.