Rescuers recover body of trapped worker at Chile copper mine
The collapse took place on Thursday at the El Teniente mine 100km south of Santiago, following a ‘seismic event’. 4 miners remain trapped
One of five miners trapped after a partial collapse at the world’s largest underground copper mine has been found dead, Chile’s state-owned Codelco group said on Saturday.
The collapse took place on Thursday at the El Teniente mine in Rancagua, 100km (62 miles) south of Santiago, following a “seismic event”.
It was not yet known whether the tremor was natural or caused by drilling.
At least 100 people were taking part in the rescue operation for the workers, who had been extending the mine to a depth of 1,200 metres (3,900 feet).
“As part of the search operation, human remains were found and have yet to be identified by the authorities,” Codelco said in a statement.
El Teniente general manager Andres Music said the discovery of the miner’s remains “deeply saddens us, but it also tells us that we are in the right place” to find the other missing workers.
Thursday’s magnitude 4.2 earthquake resulted in an initial toll of one dead and nine injured.