The wait continues for workers trapped under the soil in İliç gold mine

Search and rescue operations are ongoing for the nine workers trapped under the collapsed heap leach at the Çöpler Gold Mine owned by Anagold Mining in the İliç district of Erzincan since February 13.

The families of the trapped workers are also waiting for hopeful news from their loved ones.

Cihat Karadağ, a coworker who was trapped underground, told journalists that he rushed outside, thinking it was an earthquake at the time of the incident.

Karadağ explained that he tried to call his friends but couldn't reach them. He said, "Our friends, whom we have worked together with for years, are like our family, our souls. I can't find any words to say, our hearts ache. Our hearts ache just as much as theirs."

Families are receiving psychosocial support from the Erzincan Directorate of Family and Social Services.

In the efforts to reach the workers, a total of 1708 personnel, including 339 search and rescue personnel from AFAD, Turkish Armed Forces Search and Rescue, JAK, PAK, UMKE, miners, and civil society organizations, are involved in the operation.

Expert teams from the General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration are using metal-sensitive drones capable of imaging approximately 30 meters below ground to locate the containers and vehicles believed to contain the trapped workers.

After pinpointing the location of the area where the workers are believed to be, the teams plan to intensify search and rescue efforts in that area.

After conducting inspections today, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar stated, "If we had the means and attempted to remove it today, we would need at least 400,000 trucks." (AÖ/PE)