nine people were trapped by a landslide

A witness filmed the impressive images of the endless landslide in İliç, in the Turkish province of Erzincan. Tons of earth fell on a gold mine in northwest Turkey. The mound that collapsed was formed by a pile of earth removed from the mine. It likely contained cyanide, an extremely toxic chemical compound used to extract gold. Miners were buried.

“We are continuing our relief operations without interruption”

“The total volume of earth that flowed over 800 meters is estimated at 10 million cubic meters. Nine workers, unfortunately, were trapped under this mass of earth and we are continuing our rescue operations without interruption”, specified Ali Yerlikaya, the Minister of the Interior of Turkey. Hope of finding the miners is dwindling and operations are slowed down by the presence of cyanide. The Chamber of Mining Engineers of Turkey denounces a chain of negligence.