A road has been closed in Co Kilkenny following a rock collapse at a zinc mine in Galmoy.
No one was injured in the incident at the Arcon Mines-owned operation on Wednesday, the company said. However, it did cause cracks to appear in a minor road crossing the mine, and this has been closed by Kilkenny County Council.
A three-inch subsidence in the road was also observed by council officials, it was learned last night. There are no houses on the stretch of road affected.
The incident was reported by the company to the Department of the Marine and Natural Resources, as well as the council, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Health and Safety Authority.
In a statement, the Department said Arcon had informed it of a collapse of rock into one of the underground areas of the mine, which has been in operation since March 1997.
The Department and the other agencies were co-ordinating efforts to ensure the incident was investigated and that remedial measures were put in place.
"The relevant authorities will continue to review their own and the company's response to this incident and to act to ensure public safety, the safety of the workforce and the protection of the environment.
"The Department understands that the collapse occurred in a worked-out area of the mine which was being back-filled," the statement said.
The decision to close the road had been taken as a precaution in consultation with both the county council and the Garda.
Work has ceased in the immediate area of the collapse, but operations are continuing in the rest of the mine, the company said.
Arcon was founded in 1992 by the merger of Atlantic Resources and Conroy Petroleum & Natural Resources. Its main focus since then has been on the development of the mine at Galmoy.
The company reported a net loss last April of €10.48 million (£8.25 million) for the year 2000, a result which was well below expectations, said Arcon's chairman, Mr Tony O'Reilly jnr.
