The company's leadership said it has launched a review of activities following the October 22 incident, and introduced new safety protocols.

Newcrest Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Sandeep Biswas, said, "The devastating incident at Brucejack is a stark reminder that safety must always be our number one priority as a business.

"During the suspension of operations we reviewed all activities at Brucejack to identify major hazards and corresponding critical controls to prevent fatalities and life-changing injuries. We also established additional control verification mechanisms to ensure those critical controls are effective and working".

The contractor worked for Procon, which has been involved with Brucejack since 2012. It holds a full-service underground mine development contract at the site.

Brucejack was previously expected to produce 320,000-370,000 ounces of gold in the year to June 30, 2023, and today confirmed that the incident will have no impact on this.