Miners buried alive in Pongkor mountain

Miners buried alive in Pongkor mountain

BOGOR (JP): Rescue workers and local villagers on Sunday
temporarily halted the search for bodies of illegal gold miners
thought to be buried in a landslide on Monday beneath the mud of
Pongkor mountain.

So far, rescue workers, including those from the military and
PT Aneka Tambang, which officially has the right to operate the
gold mine at Nanggung subdistrict here, have unearthed at least
26 dead bodies.

Locals believe that at least 11 others are buried under the
mud.

About 37 people were working at two separate mine sites in
Cepu and Ciurug when heavy rains hit the area and loosened the
walls of mud.

The landslide was reportedly so disastrous because the many
mineshafts were not adequately reinforced, making the hillside
very unstable.

Under heavy rain, rescue workers had unearthed 10 bodies from
Cepu quarry and 16 from Ciurug as of Thursday night.

Among the victims identified were Uti, Aat, Basri, Iben,
Barot, Icang, Ayut, Asep, Iip and Kokon. The workers reportedly
have been quarrying in Pongkor for quite some time.

The bodies were reportedly brought back to their families
without being taken to hospital.

Most of the illegal gold miners came from West Java towns such
as Pelabuhan Ratu and Sukabumi.

The recovery of bodies has been made difficult because access
to the site was along a narrow, slippery track.

For several years, poorly equipped gold miners have risked
their lives digging shafts in the Pongkor area to collect earth
from which gold is extracted.

The Pongkor mountain has become a mass grave for scores of
illegal miners over the past few years. However, this has not
stopped others filling their places.

The number of miners increased last year when the rupiah nose-
dived, forcing gold in the local market to a decade high.

Bogor Police chief Lt. Col. Ade Husein was not available for
comment on the incident. (21/edt)