Tunnel specialists bolster Peru mine rescue effort

Tunnel specialists bolster Peru mine rescue effort

Tunnel reinforcement specialists arrived Monday to reinforce shafts at a copper mine in southern Peru where nine workers have been trapped for four days, providing a boost for frantic relatives.

Relatives of nine trapped miners carry supplies outside Cabeza de Negro copper mine, 1,300 meters over the sea level in the Andes, east of Ica, 325 km south of Lima, on April 8. Tunnel reinforcement specialists arrived Monday to reinforce shafts at a copper mine in southern Peru where nine workers have been trapped for four days, providing a boost for frantic relatives.

The addition of 20 specialists from private mining companies came after Oscar Valdes, cabinet chief to President Ollanta Humala, told reporters of new roof collapses inside the Cabeza de Negro mine, 325 kilometers (200 miles) south of Lima.

The miners have been trapped 250 meters (820 feet) underground in a horizontal tunnel since Thursday when a shaft collapsed.

The nine, aged 22 to 59 and including a father and son, were not injured and remain together. They were being supplied with oxygen, water and soup through a metal tube that they also use to communicate with rescue workers.

Celestina Lopez Perez, who has a husband and two sons trapped in the mine, welcomed the specialists and pleaded with them to speed up efforts to keep her loved ones alive.

Some miners have been able to speak with relatives who are staying near the mine at an improvised camp of about 80 people that also includes police, firefighters and other miners.

While their health is generally considered sound, some of the miners are suffering from anxiety given the emergency situation.

Outside the mine on Sunday, a group of rescuers cut wood beams to reinforce the tunnel walls.

Workers also used their hands and buckets to remove the debris obstructing the shaft. Before entering the mine, many chewed coca leaves in the belief that it would help them confront the difficult task.

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