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 announced on Saturday. Rescuers continue to search for the remaining four missing workers.
The collapse occurred on Thursday at the El Teniente mine in Rancagua, 100km south of Santiago, following a 'seismic event.' It remains unclear whether the tremor was natural or caused by drilling operations. At least 100 people are involved in the rescue operation, which is attempting to drill through 90 metres of rock to reach the trapped miners.
Codelco stated that human remains were discovered during the search and are yet to be formally identified. El Teniente's general manager, Andres Music, said the discovery 'deeply saddens us, but it also tells us that we are in the right place' to find the other missing workers.
Chile's President Gabriel Boric visited the miners' relatives on Saturday and vowed to 'complete the search,' adding that 'Codelco has all the resources, experience and technology to carry out' the operation. The body of another miner, identified as Paulo Marin Tapia, was found on Friday shortly after the collapse; he was not among the five trapped.
Work has been suspended at El Teniente, which began operations in the early 1900s and has more than 4,500km of underground tunnels. Last year, the site produced 356,000 metric tonnes of copper, nearly 7% of Chile's total output. Chile is the world's largest copper producer, accounting for about a quarter of global supply.
