Q: What did you find at the lower drum?
A: A pale strand showing through the outer twist. It is a reason to look again, not a finding that the rope has failed. We have not recorded a broken fiber in the sample.
Q: Why stop heavy loads before the test is complete?
A: A rope has to be judged while doing the work asked of it. A bench pull and a careful look at the strands do not show how it behaves when a loaded cart stops. The next test uses the heaviest routine stone load and records the full stop.
Q: Does the hold close the galleries below the hoist?
A: No. The hold covers heavy lifts on this line. Light maintenance traffic is using the west passage, and the east face remains subject to its own survey. Those are separate decisions even if they affect the same shift board.
Q: When will you recommend replacement?
A: When the test and the sample agree, and the record says how. If they do not agree, we repeat the examination. I will not turn a visible strand into a replacement order without the load entry that supports it.
