South Crofty tin mine headgear structure to be revived

The refurbishment of the mine headgear will allow it to transport people and materials into the mine

A historic mine's headgear structure in Cornwall is set to be revived.

It is part of work - expected to take years - to make the tin and copper mine operational again.

The refurbishment of the south headframe at South Crofty, which closed in 1998, will allow it to transport people and materials underground as water is removed from the mine.

Mine manager Steve Tarrant said there were eight million cubit metres of void space, much of which was flooded.

He told BBC Radio Cornwall it needed to be cleared to "access the deepest levels of the mine where we want to start mining again in future".

Mine manager Steve Tarrant said most of the South Crofty mine had been flooded

Mr Tarrant said: "Ever since the mine closed one of the biggest hurdles for getting it reopened was pumping the water out.

"That's not an insignificant investment and it requires a lot of infrastructure and capital to do that."

Workers tried to rescue the iconic sheave wheel but it will now be replaced due to its age and fragility.

Mr Tarrant said they had purchased two new winding engines which would help workers get down the main shaft.

"For us to complete the dewatering we need to be able to get down it in the time-honoured way of using cages, winding ropes, sheave wheels and winding engines," he added.

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