CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — At the very least 14 folks died in a mine collapse in El Callao, Venezuela after torrential rains hit the southeast area, authorities mentioned on Monday.
A command submit was set as much as “coordinate operations to get better the 14 deceased,” led by Brigadier Common Gregory González Acevedo, head of the Operational Zones for Injury Evaluation and Wants Evaluation (ZOEDAN) in Bolívar state.
The deaths occurred in three completely different shafts of the “Cuatro Esquinas de Caratal” mine, positioned on the town of El Callao, about 850 kilometers (528 miles) southeast of Caracas, the company reported in an announcement on its Instagram account.
Search and rescue operations started with “the pumping out of all of the shafts within the space to decrease the water degree, after which evaluating rescue efforts” for the folks trapped contained in the gold mine, the assertion added, with out offering additional particulars.
The demise toll relies on different miners’ testimony, fireplace fighters in El Callao mentioned on social media. Flooding triggered the collapse of the vertical mines, often called ravines.
El Callao is a city the place life will depend on gold mining. Most of its 30,000 inhabitants take part immediately or not directly in mining.
Venezuela is stuffed with copper, diamond and different treasured steel mining, the place unsafe working situations are widespread within the poorly regulated business.
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Comply with AP’s protection of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america
