The death toll from the collapse of an illegal mine in southern Venezuela
could reach 25 dead
, the mayor of the affected area, Yorgi Arciniega, reported this Wednesday, while rescue efforts continue.
"At this time we do not have an exact number. There is talk of 25 dead and 15 injured," said the mayor of the Angostura municipality in a text message sent to AFP.
Earlier, the regional government spoke of two deaths and the same number of injuries.
The collapse occurred on Tuesday afternoon
and several miners were trapped in the mine, located in the Angostura municipality of Bolívar state, about 460 kilometers southeast of the capital.
Angostura is an area of difficult access where there are many small lakes, swamps and important rivers such as the Caroní, which feeds Guri, the largest hydroelectric complex in the country.
Angostura Mayor Yorgi Arciniega
said Tuesday night that he planned to take “some 30 chests (coffins)”
to La Paragua, the community closest to the mine, but did not confirm the death toll.
Gold, copper, diamond and other precious metal mines proliferate
in Venezuela ,
but in many of them workers carry out their work in poor safety conditions.
The boom in mining activity south of the Orinoco River has become the lifeline for nearby towns and attracted thousands of unemployed people from all over the country.
In the south of the states of Amazonas and Bolívar, there is growing illegal mining and criminal gangs that smuggle gold are proliferating, according to authorities and critics of President Nicolás Maduro's government.
Source: AP and AFP
P.B.