Emergency services recover body trapped in old mineshaft in NSW Hunter Valley

Police have recovered the body of a man who fell down a decommissioned mineshaft in NSW’s Hunter Valley after a frantic overnight search. Emergency services were called to Dry Creek Rd at Ellalong shortly before 1pm on Tuesday following reports of a workplace incident. A large-scale multi-agency search was dispatched to retrieve the man, but was abandoned before resuming on Wednesday. Tragically, police confirmed the body of the 59-year-old was located about 11am in water at the base of the mine shaft. The man is yet to be formally identified. The NSW Resources Regulator is investigating the man’s death. A report will be prepared with information for the coroner. The alarm was raised about 12.45pm on Tuesday, at Dry Creek Road, near Ellalong. Ellalong is about an hour’s drive west of Newcastle. Police were called to a report of a “workplace incident”, a police spokesperson said in a statement. “At the scene, police were told that a man had fallen into a decommissioned mine shaft. “The operation is expected to be ongoing for some time, and further information will be released when available,” the spokesperson said. Police, ambulance, and fire and rescue staff are on scene, including the police rescue and bomb disposal squad. Nearby to where emergency services are looking was one of the country’s biggest coal reserves. The mammoth deep-underground Austar Coal Mine was closed and sealed two years ago. Surface mining, and later underground mining, of the reserves began in 1916. Information from the state government shows Dry Creek Road falls squarely in Austar’s land.