All 17 miners at the Cargill Salt Mine in Lansing have now been rescued after they were stuck in an elevator about 900 feet below ground.

The 4th group of workers emerge from the Cargill Salt Mine after they were trapped in an elevator Wednesday night. Pool photo/Ithaca Journal

More updates to come —

Update 9:40 a.m.: Live from a news conference at the Lansing fire department:

Miners huddle, joke to keep up warmth and morale

Over the course of the 10 hour rescue effort, the 17 trapped miners stayed huddled together against the cold. "They did what they could do to keep each other warm and keep each other's spirits up," said Shawn Wilczynski, mine manager for the Cargill Salt Mine.

The miners reportedly spent the night "joking, sharing stories and having a good time with each other" to keep morale high through the ordeal.

Once the rescue was finished, "The first thing was to say 'Nice to see you,' and get them into a dry warm environment."

The miners, all men, ranged in age and experience levels. The group included a 40-year veteran to one miner who had been on the job for just a few months. Some members were from the mine's maintenance crew. Ages ranged from 20 to 60 years old - with the 60 year old being among the first to be rescued.

"Their spirits are tremendous," Wilczynski said of the miners.

He said that personal information about the miners at each individual employee's own discretion.

What caused the elevator breakdown?

According to mine officials, the 2nd shift crew exited the mine at 9:55 p.m. There were no noises or any indications of any problems with the elevator at that time.

Five or ten minutes later, the third shift crew entered the elevator to begin their shift.

"We think this was a mechanical break," said Wilczynski. The running theory is that on one of the site's vertical beams, a guide broke lose and came out of the shaft, preventing the elevator from moving downward.

However, he cautioned that the details are still uncertain.

"We need to take our time," said Wilczynski, "this is not an incident or something we want to look at lightly."

He said that Cargill would need to step back, regroup and ensure they had the right resources to fully understand what occured.

"We are in no hurry to move forward from an operation standpoint or anything else," Wilczynski said.

According to Wilczynski, the National Mine Association and Mine Safety Administration review the safety of around 13,000 mines of various sizes around the country. In 2011 and 2013, the Cayuga Salt Mine was awrded the Centennial of Safety Award for the safest large underground nonmetal mine in the country.

He said it had been almost 6 years since the last accident at the Lansing mine. That accident occurred on March 24 of 2010, when a salt bin collapsed on a truck.

The rescue effort

Emergency responders from Lansing arrived first.

The first supplies were delivered to the trapped miners at around midnight. The supplies and their delivery method was rudimentary, but effective. Rescue workers lowered duffle bags with a light attached into the shaft on messenger cables. The bags contained blankets, hates, gloves and a heater to help the miners stay warm.

"We were constantly try to keep them with whatever they needed," Wilczynski said.

None of the miner's families were on the scene. Wilczynski said they reached out to the miners' families based on information the miners provided and were able to get in contact with some.

He said that Cargill employees train with Ithaca and Lansing fire department every year to prepare for emergencies. "It's something you hope you never to use," he said, but he was glad that the training had paid off.

Wilczynski said that there were numerous agencies who helped in the rescue and the outpouring and willingness to help was extremely welcome.

Update 8 a.m.: Now 15 miners have been safely rescued. The other 2 are also expected to be OK, according to emergency officials.

"The workers are in radio communication with company officials on the surface," says a news release from the county. "Workers have also been provided with jackets, hand warmers, and other items to make sure they remain warm."

Update: The first eight miners have just been rescued and all others are expected to get out safely, according to Tompkins County Administrator Joe Mareane.

Earlier, officials said 17 miners became stuck at the Cargill Salt Mine in Lansing at around 10:30 p.m. Wednesday night.

They became stuck in a double-decker elevator about 900-feet down the 2,300-foot shaft. For perspective, about 1.5 Empire State buildings could fit in the shaft.

We'll provide updates as they become available.

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Update at 6:45 a.m.: Officials at a news conference have said 17 miners are stuck in an air shaft at the Cargill Salt Mine in Lansing. The workers have been stuck since about 10:30 p.m.

Lieutenant Tom Basher, of the Ithaca Fire Department, said multiple rescue options have been weighed and it was determined that it would be best to use a basket care from Auburn to to rescue them.

"That's going on right now," Basher said. "Any minute we should have the first crews up and out."

He said it's about 18-degrees outside but because it's an airshaft, workers have been facing a constant breeze all night.

Rescuers have been able to provide the workers with blankets, heat packs, and other necessary supplies.

The salt mine is located under Cayuga Lake. It provides road salt, primarily, to northeast states.

Earlier –

LANSING, N.Y. – Officials have been making rescue efforts to get 17 workers out of a stuck elevator shaft at the Cargill Salt Mine since late Wednesday night.

Rescue crews were called to 191 Portland Point Road around 11:30 p.m., the Tompkins Department of Emergency Response said.

The shaft is thought to be stuck about 775 to 900 feet deep.

An official said no injuries have been reported and all 17 people are safe.

"They are safe. It's just a matter of getting them out," an emergency response official said.

Rescuers have been able to provide the workers with blankets, heat packs, and other necessary supplies.

The Lansing Fire Department, Cayuga Heights Fire Department, rope teams from the Ithaca and Trumansburg Fire Department, multiple ambulances and the Tompkins County Sheriff's office are at the scene as of 5:10 a.m. A crane is also being used at the scene.

An emergency response official said crew are expected to be at the scene for several more hours.

This is a developing story. A reporter is on the way to the scene.

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