Ross 800 Level station upgrade

These photos (see gallery at the end of this story) by Multimedia Specialist Matt Kapust illustrate progress in the five-year project to replace steel in the Ross Shaft.

The top photo, taken Aug. 14, shows the old corrugated steel ?snow shed? at the top of the Ross Shaft station on the 800 Level. Snow sheds protected miners waiting at stations for a cage, but loose rock could build up, unseen, behind the sheds.

In the middle photo, taken Aug. 19, Infrastructure Technician James Gregory surveys the same station. The snow shed is gone. So are the old 6-foot H-beam steel sets. Note the new ground-control measures, including rock bolts and welded steel mesh, which allows thorough inspections of rock conditions. 

The bottom photo, taken Aug. 23, shows a new 18-foot tubular steel set installed at the station. However, this photo already is out of date. Underground Access Director Will McElroy, who is project director for the steel replacement, reports that the doors for the 800 Level station have been installed.

The project to replace all the steel in the 5,000-foot Ross Shaft began on Aug. 4, 2012. Not quite 13 months later, 904 feet of steel in the shaft has been replaced. That?s slightly ahead of schedule. ?We are days ahead,? McElroy says. ?But days ahead are better than days behind.? 

The steel replacement is scheduled for completion in June 2017.