The collapse of a gold mine in Venezuela underscores the dangers of a poorly regulated industry
The collapse of the open-pit gold mine that killed at least 16 people has underscored the dangers of working in a poorly regulated industry
LA PARAGUA, Venezuela (AP) — Osvaldo Romero and his wife got off a battered boat Friday under the scorching sun of central Venezuela and walked up the bank of a river barefoot, their pants soaking wet and eyes showing the shock of having faced days earlier one of the country’s deadliest mining disasters.
He carried a few belongings they had wrapped with plastic and rope, and as residents of the community of La Paragua approached him, he said he regretted having worked at the remote mine where greed and callousness were king and queen.
“That is the worst mine I have ever worked in,” said Romero, who has been a miner for 10 years. He had been working at the collapsed Bulla Loca mine until Thursday, when he and his wife, without any money or gold to show for their hard work since January, hopped on the boat.
“They were removing the injured from the rubble, and they were still taking gold out. That’s unconscionable,” he said.
