MANILA, Philippines (3rd UPDATE) - A landslide at the country's biggest coal mine site in Caluya, Antique, late Wednesday, February 13, left 3 dead, 13 trapped and 7 miners missing.
The miners work at the Panian mine of Semirara Mining Corp. located at Barangay Semirara, according to Chief Supt. Agrimero Cruz Jr., Western Visayas police director. Cruz denied earlier reports that 200 people were buried in the landslide.
A statement released by Semirara said the accident—the third to occur in mining sites in the last 6 months—left 3 dead, 13 trapped, and 7 missing. The company corrected its earlier statement that 4 were killed in the mishap.
Police said 3 people have been rescued in the landslide, which happened when a section of the Panian mine’s wall caved in at 11:55 pm Wednesday. Two of the 3 were treated at the Semirara Hospital while one was airlifted to Manila.
Semirara said it “stopped mine operations to ensure the safety of its personnel.” It added its management is still trying to determine the cause of the accident “in coordination with relevant government authorities.”
Cruz said incessant rains may have caused the landslide. Rescue operations for the missing miners are ongoing.
Semirara is the biggest and only large-scale coal producer in the Philippines. It is owned by the Consunji group, which has stakes in construction (via DMCI Holdings), utilities (Maynilad Water), toll roads, real estate, and power, among others.
David Consunji, chairman of the company, is the Philippines’ 5th richest man in 2012, according to Forbes.
Mine accidents
This is the 3rd mine accident reported in the country in the last 6 months.
In August, one of the tailings pond of Padcal mine in Benguet province broke, spilling waste into the nearby Balog creek, which flows into the Agno River and the San Roque dam.
Padcal owner Philex Mining Corp., the country’s biggest copper-gold producer, also blamed incessant rains for the accident.
Three months later, silt spilled from the Toronto mine of Citinickel Mines and Development Corp. in Narra, Palawan. The waste flowed into a river and irrigation canals affecting farms and a fish pond.
The Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) fined Philex and Citinickel for the mine spills, claiming both were negligent in their operations.
Philex will pay a P1-billion fine under the Mining Act, on top of other fines imposed on the company for violation of its environmental compliance certificate. Citinickel was fined over P500,000.
The two companies were asked to clean up and rehabilitate affected waterways.
Citinickel is a subsidiary of Oriental Peninsula Resources Group Inc.
Philex, Oriental Peninsula, Semirara and parent DMCI Holdings are publicly traded companies.
Semirara’s stock price plunged following news of the accident.
At 1:46 pm Thursday, Semirara was down P17.80 or 6.9% at P240 per share in the Philippine Stock Exchange versus Wednesday’s (February 13) close of P257.80. – Rappler.com source
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