[Vision2020] Mexican Mine Disaster

[Mark Solomon]

Phil,

For an outsider it's hard to keep track of who's 
who in the mining industry these days as former 
US corporations transfer their assets and 
"ownership" overseas, but isn't Grupo Mexico the 
outfit that used to be known locally as Asarco? 
Not that ownership necessarily has anything to do 
with mine safety. Prayers sent.

Mark Solomon

At 1:56 AM -0800 2/20/06, Phil Nisbet wrote:
>Those who have the desire to might wish to say a 
>prayer for the miners trapped down in this mine 
>in Mexico.
>
>Oxygen Limited for Trapped Mexican Miners
>By OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ, Associated Press Writer
>
>SAN JUAN DE SABINAS, Mexico - A gas buildup in a 
>northern Mexico coal mine triggered a pre-dawn 
>explosion Sunday, trapping 65 miners who were 
>only carrying six hours of oxygen. Emergency 
>officials were slowly tunneling through the 
>debris, hoping they had access to fresh air and 
>had survived.
>
>At least eight miners who had been near the 
>mine's exit when the explosion occurred were 
>rescued and hospitalized with burns and broken 
>bones. None of the injuries was considered 
>life-threatening.
>
>Union and company officials said they believed 
>there were 65 miners trapped throughout the 
>mine, near the town of San Juan de Sabinas, 85 
>miles southwest of Eagle Pass, Texas.
>
>Sergio Robles, director of Coahuila state's 
>emergency services, said the trapped miners were 
>carrying six hours of oxygen with them and were 
>located one to three miles from the mine's 
>entrance. Nearly 20 hours after the explosion, 
>rescue officials — slowed by toxic gases, 
>including carbon monoxide — had not been able to 
>make contact with the miners, and it was unclear 
>if fresh air was reaching them.
>
>When asked if officials believed the miners 
>survived the explosion, Robles said: "It would 
>be difficult because of the presence of gas. But 
>we are holding out hope of finding someone 
>alive."
>
>Juan Rebolledo, vice president of international 
>affairs for mining giant Grupo Mexico, which 
>owns the mine, said rescue teams were taking 
>turns carefully removing debris that had clogged 
>the steep shaft.
>
>"It's slow work because of the quantity of 
>debris," he said. Officials were planning on 
>working throughout the night.
>
>Robles said rescue officials had advanced up to 
>300 yards into the mine after working nearly 20 
>hours. It was unclear when they would reach the 
>miners. The explosion occurred around 2:30 a.m. 
>local time Sunday.
>
>Rebolledo said oxygen tanks were scattered 
>throughout the mine, but it was impossible to 
>know if the trapped miners had access to them.
>
>Coahuila Gov. Humberto Moreira Valdes, who was 
>at the site overseeing the rescue operation, 
>told Televisa network that the mine's 
>ventilation system was still working.
>
>Officials had cordoned off the area, and worried 
>family members waited outside the security zone 
>for information. As night fell, many built 
>bonfires and wrapped themselves in blankets to 
>guard against the cold.
>
>Among them was Norma Vitela, who heard on the 
>radio that her husband, 47-year-old Jose Angel 
>Guzman, was trapped. Guzman, a father of four, 
>had worked in the mine for 16 years, earning $76 
>a week.
>
>"Now we are waiting for a miracle from God," she said.
>
>Vitela said her husband had mentioned before 
>that there were problems with gas in the mine, 
>but he could not afford to quit.
>
>Consuelo Aguilar, a spokeswoman for the National 
>Miners' Union, said union officials were also 
>there to assist in the rescue.
>
>She said there has been concern over safety 
>conditions in Grupo Mexico mines and called for 
>an investigation to determine the exact cause of 
>the accident and the responsibility of any 
>company officials.
>
>"We have pressured for better safety conditions 
>as well as for better pay at the mines," she 
>said.
>
>Pedro Camarillo, a federal labor official, told 
>reporters at the site that officials found 
>nothing unusual during a routine evaluation on 
>Feb. 7.
>
>Rebolledo said safety conditions at the mine met 
>Mexican government requirements as well as 
>international standards.
>
>"We follow all the best safety procedures, but 
>accidents can always happen," Rebolledo said.
>
>The company discusses safety conditions with the 
>union in annual meetings and there has been no 
>major disagreement on the issue, he said.
>
>As well as mining coal, Grupo Mexico is the 
>world's third-largest copper producer, with 
>operations in Mexico, Peru and the United States.
>
>There have been various fatal mining accidents 
>in Coahuila. The worst was in 1969 when more 
>than 153 miners were killed in a pit at the 
>village of Barroteran. In 2001, another 12 
>people died in an accident at a mine near 
>Barroteran.
>
>Last month, 14 miners died in two separate 
>accidents at mines in West Virginia. Two men 
>died in a fire Jan. 21 at a mine in Melville, 
>nearly three weeks after 12 men died after an 
>explosion at the Sago mine near Tallmansville.
>
>U.S. rules require miners to carry oxygen tanks 
>that provide only about an hour's worth of air. 
>There is evidence that some of the miners killed 
>in the Jan. 2 Sago mine accident used their 
>oxygen devices, yet it took rescuers more than 
>40 hours to bring the victims above ground.
>
>In Canada last month, 72 potash miners walked 
>away from an underground fire and toxic smoke 
>after being locked down overnight in airtight 
>chambers packed with enough oxygen, food and 
>water for several days.
>
>___
>
>Associated Press Writer Ioan Grillo in Mexico City contributed to this report.
>
>_________________________________________________________________
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