Rescued: 28 trapped miners from New Zealand gold mine Newmont, the US-owned company which operates the mine in New Zealand, was quick to issue a statement assuring relatives there was no danger of an explosion, unlike the Pike River Coal Mine in which 29 miners died in November 2010. "Many of us have very vivid images of Pike River," said Newmont spokesman Kit Wilson. Gold mines are very different. There's nothing to explode in a gold mine, so we stay in a refuge chamber and we wait for help. Praising the rescue effort, Glen Grindlay, the mine's operations manager, said the miners were "fine and everyone's in good spirits." He added: "One person may have smoke inhalation, and we will look after him as a precaution." Mr Grindlay said the cause of the fire was not known but will be the subject of an investigation. The mine is expected to stay closed for several days. But Ged O'Connell, assistant secretary of the Engineering, Print and Manufacturing Union, said the incident underlined calls for New Zealand to ensure it followed "world-class practices" to regulate its mines. "Coming so soon after the tragedy at Pike River, it was a little close for comfort," he said. The Pike River Coal Mine disaster, on the west coast of the South Island, was New Zealand's worst mining disaster in almost a century. Pike River Coal Ltd went into receivership after the incident and has just been sold. A public inquiry into what happened there concluded in April, and a final report is due by the end of September.