Stillwater mining accident kills two

Town Crier “Briefs from the Region” (2) – 6/15/21

Two men who died in an underground mining accident at Stillwater Mine in Nye, Montana last week were identified. Dale Ketola, 65, of Columbus, Montana and Jerry Ashlock, 55, of Caldwell, Idaho were in a utility vehicle when it crashed into an underground locomotive, according to a statement by the vice president of South African-based Sibanye-Stillwater, who owns Stillwater Mine. Both men were pronounced dead by the time first responders arrived on scene and the cause is under investigation. Stillwater is the only platinum mining company in the U.S. and employs 2,335 with 1,200 of them at the mine in Nye.