MELBOURNE, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Newcrest Mining on Tuesday rescued a worker who was trapped 300 metres underground for eight days after a cave-in at its Gosowong gold mine in Indonesia.
The worker, Mursalim Sahman, survived thanks to two small holes that were drilled to supply him with food, water and a communications link, and was eventually pulled up through a 38-metre hole drilled down from an existing tunnel above where he was, Newcrest said.
"Pak Mursalim showed great courage in the face of extreme adversity," Newcrest Chief Executive Biswas said in a statement.
The cause of the cave-in is under investigation and operations remain suspended at Gosowong, which produced 141,000 ounces of gold in the six months to December, making up 12 percent of the company's gold output.