Authorities in the Atacama region activated security protocols in front of a gigantic sinkhole that appeared near the Alcaparros Mine in Tierra Amarilla, Chile.
“We received yesterday [sábado] a citizen complaint about a sinkhole that would have occurred here in our commune near the Alcaparros Mine, which is part of the Candelária Mine,” said the commune’s mayor, Cristóbal Zúñiga.
“We are concerned, as it is a fear that we have always had as a community, the fact that we are surrounded by mining deposits and underground works under our community,” he added.
At the moment, the origin of the phenomenon is unknown. However, the head of the community warned that the sinkhole “is still active, continues to grow and is something that was not seen in our community”.
“We ask that it be possible to clarify the reason and why this event occurred, what the reasons are, if the collapse is a product of mining activity below or if it is of another nature”, he added.
However, in his Facebook account, the mayor assured: “We will go to the last consequences as a municipality to protect our community and end once and for all with these abuses and the excessive contamination of these mining companies”.
The presidential delegate of the Atacama Region, Gerardo Tapia, instructed the National Service of Geology and Mining (Sernageomin) “to carry out an on-site review”.
Meanwhile, the Mining Region Secretariat (Seremi) of the Atacama Region, went to the site to inspect the sinkhole and indicated that there is no harm to people. They also indicated that they will continue to monitor the situation.
This Monday (1st), Sergeomin indicated that the phenomenon has an approximate diameter of 25 meters. In addition, he instructed the closing of the mine accesses to the work located vertically to the tunnel:
- Level 270, closing distance at 286 meters.
- Level 200, closing distance at 538 meters.
- I also reveal that the distance from the surface sinkhole to level 270 is 200 meters.
“During today, officials from the Mining and Geology areas of the Atacama de Sernageomin Directorate will go to the site to continue assessing the situation and making new recommendations. In addition, we will have the presence of the geomechanics of the Undersecretariat for Mining at the central level,” he said.
Source: CNN Brasil
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