JAKARTA (BERNAMA) – Indonesian rescue agency Basarnas dispatched a team of 10 professionals to central Java where eight gold miners were reported to have been trapped in a 60-metre deep mining hole at the Pancurendang gold mine on the outskirts of Ajibarang, Banyumas since Wednesday.
Cilacap District Basarnas Head Adah Sudarsa said local communities and families are also actively assisting on the fourth day of the search and rescue mission.
“We hope the whole evacuation process runs smoothly,” Sudarsa said in a statement. A joint search and rescue operation involving over 220 personnel from Basarnas, the police, and the military had been deployed so far at Pancurendang.
The rescue team’s primary objective is to pump out water that has accumulated in the 60-metre deep open mining pit and five nearby water entry points. To achieve this, they are utilising 13 submersible pump machines.
The eight miners have been trapped underground since Wednesday 7am Western Indonesia time, when water unexpectedly flooded the area.
Meanwhile, Banyumas Police apprehended three suspects in connection with the incident and are currently searching for one more. All suspects, residents of Ajibarang, are facing charges for violating Law Number 3 of 2020 on Amendment to Law Number 4 of 2009 on Mineral and Coal Mining.
The detainees, identified as the landowner, site owner, investor, and mine operator, are allegedly responsible for illegal gold extraction in the area.
