Major Employer In Cariboo Idled Because Of Wildfires

Gibralter Mines has been temporarily shut down.

Brian Battison, the Vice President of Corporate Affairs for Taseko Mines, explains why.

“The fires do not pose any immediate threat to the mine or its physical structures or equipment. It’s really because employees can’t get to the site. The fires have effected their ability to travel to the site because the road access from McLeese Lake and Williams Lake and Quesnel is closed at the moment.”

Battison says the plan is to restart as soon as they can after those roads are open.

Roughly 650 people work at Gibralter Mine, mostly from Williams Lake but many from Quesnel as well as people from other smaller communities in the region.