Freeport mine collapses, 30 workers trapped
Tuesday, May 14 2013 - 07:26 AM WIB
At least 30 workers of PT Freeport Indonesia are trapped in an underground gold mine belonging to the US company after a tunnel in Big Gossan area in Mile 74 in Papua collapsed on Tuesday morning.
An unnamed source said the company?s Emergency Response Group (ERG), local police and medical workers from SOS Hospital in Tembagapura had begun the search and rescue for the victims, Kompas.com reported on Tuesday.
The accident occurred at about 7 a.m. local time. The ceiling of the QMS underground tunnel collapsed all of a sudden.
?The site of accident is an access to the tunnel, therefore we can evacuate the victims from other tunnels. However we fear about the workers? safety as the ceiling is made of stone, not soil,? the source said.
Either PT Freeport Indonesia or the police have yet to make any statement related to the accident. (*)