Following the company being put into receivership Wednesday, the board of directors for Victoria Gold has apparently resigned.

That news was reported by CBC in an interview with president and chief executive officer John McConnell Thursday.

No other sources have confirmed the resignation, however, and there is no formal announcement from Victoria Gold.

The eight-person board consists of McConnell, T. Sean Harvey, Christopher Hill, Joseph Ovsenek, Steve Haggarty, Ria Fitzgerald, Kimberly Keating and Susan Flasha.

Harvey is the current chair of the board.

Victoria Gold is the owner of the Eagle Gold Mine near Mayo – on the traditional territory of the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyäk Dun. The mine’s heap leach pad suffered a catastrophic collapse June 24.

The resignations were the central focus of this morning’s weekly technical briefing on the Eagle Gold Mine held by the Yukon government.

Justice Minister Tracy-Anne McPhee faced a flurry of questions about the situation.

She repeated many of the points she made in a news release Wednesday following the court hearing.

She noted the government had issued four different sets of directives to the company regarding the mitigation work being carried out at the mine since the heap leach pad slumped into the floor of the Dublin Gulch valley June 24, causing a massive landslide.

Several parts of those directives were not carried out by Victoria Gold, causing friction with the government.

“That inaction led to serious concerns,” McPhee said. “The purpose of those directives was to make sure Victoria Gold was acting appropriately.”

She insisted that the receivership was of limited scope, not intended to put the mine or the company out of business.

The idea was to make sure the company’s own assets and money were being used to finance the cleanup, McPhee said.

The Yukon Party, the official Opposition in the Yukon legislature, declined to comment specifically on the resignations.

A spokesperson reiterated the party’s preference was to see Victoria Gold remain in charge of the site and pay for the clean-up efforts.

The Yukon Chamber of Commerce provided a prepared statement on the resignations. Executive director Luke Pantin said that there could be substantial ripple effects on local contractors, suppliers and the broader community.

A request for comment from the Yukon Chamber of Mines on the Victoria Gold situation was not responded to by deadline.

McPhee said the government’s plan was to hold Victoria Gold responsible for the remediation work.

“The judge said this was the only path forward,” McPhee said.

Victoria Gold representatives had asked the court for a delay in hearing the application, but the request was denied.

As well, McPhee said the company stated it was planning its own application to address “insolvency issues”.

McPhee added the resignation of the board was “their decision.”

“We weren’t trying to put them out of business,” she said. “We were very careful to make sure there was a path forward.”

McPhee added the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyäk Dun was a partner in the receivership application and was very supportive, despite launching a parallel application of its own.

The Yukon Chamber of Commerce also provided a statement concerning Victoria Gold going into receivership on Thursday.

“The chamber supports the Yukon government’s proactive measures to address the situation and we believe that an independent and transparent review process will be instrumental in maintaining trust and confidence in the sector …

“As an advocate for responsible business practices, the Yukon Chamber is committed to supporting efforts that balance economic growth with the sustainable and responsible management of natural resources.”