Little hope for 53 missing miners in Colombia

With rescue efforts continuing Friday, the mining minister held out little hope for any of the 53 workers missing after a coal mine explosion in the western part of the country.

President Alvaro Uribe was expected to visit the area Saturday to comfort victims’ family members, many of whom were holding vigils outside the blackened remains of the entrance to the Carbones San Fernando mine in Amaga, near Medellin. A buildup of methane was blamed for the explosion and fire. At least 19 miners are known to have died.

The San Fernando mine is underground, but Colombia’s biggest-producing mines are open pit operations in the north. High prices for Colombia’s relatively low-sulfur and high-energy coal have caused an influx of investment and expansion in output in recent years.

Colombia now ranks among the world’s five biggest coal exporters with Australia, Indonesia, China and South Africa.

At a news conference Friday, Uribe said the mine would remain closed for two weeks while the government investigates “irregularities.” Mining Minister Hernan Martinez said possible safety violations included improper ventilation and the lack of a methane detector.

The force of the explosion, which occurred during a shift change late Wednesday, as well as the heat generated by a subsequent fire and a heavy remaining concentration of gas, left little hope for finding survivors, Martinez said. Six miners were injured in the blast and fire.

“A rain of fire fell on top of me,” survivor Walter Restrepo told reporters, describing how he was engulfed in flames as he emerged from the mine at the end of his shift.

A collapse of part of the mile-long tunnel and the intense heat impeded rescue efforts. Officials said the rescue and recovery operation could take as long as two weeks.

Amaga has been the scene of several mining accidents in recent years. Eight miners were killed at a local mine in August. In 1977, 85 died in the nation’s worst mining disaster.

Several members of the Ossa family were among the likely victims of the most recent accident. Maria Adeleida Ossa said her brother Hugo and five cousins were missing.

“My brother had been working here a month and a half, and was happy to have a job,” Ossa told a CityTV reporter at the site of the disaster. “Jobs are hard to find, and he had a 3-year-old son to support. “

A makeshift morgue was set up in a school near the mine. Several of the bodies were burned beyond recognition. Funerals for victims began Friday morning with several coffins carried to Amaga’s central plaza.

Kraul is a special correspondent.