The Director of Mining from the Dominican Republic, Roland Munoz, said this Monday that in the collapse of the Sierra de Maimon minein which they remained caught two men, it fell about, five thousand tons of rocky material in an area of 31 meters. The two men, Carlos Yépez, the Colombian, and Gregory (Alex) Méndez, the Dominican, have been underground in the Maimón Mine since early Sunday morning, according to reports.
Muñoz explained that what happened last Sunday was that part of the road collapsed, trapping a Dominican and a Colombian who remained behind the mine.
During an interview on the program El Día, which is broadcast on Telesistema, channel 11, Muñoz explained that around 554 people work in the copper and zinc mine, but that around 70 people were at the time of the accident.
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“The mine is not just one tunnel, it is a main tunnel…and then it has branches,” he said.
He added that the area in which they are located is “fairly” large and has sufficient oxygen, while indicating that the lives of the miners are not in danger. In addition, they are supplied with food and water.
Muñoz emphasized that the rescue of the workers from the Maimón mine “is a day-to-day job,” that is, they cannot indicate an exact date of the rescue despite the fact that the men have already been trapped for 48 hours.