Official pleads for help to extricate trapped Peruvian miners

LIMA, Peru -- Peru's mining minister has appealed to mining companies for heavy equipment and experts to free nine miners trapped for four days in an informal copper mine.

Several dozen rescue workers have been using pickaxes and shovels to try to remove the 26 feet (eight meters) of collapsed earth and rock blocking the entrance of the mine, whose horizontal shaft is dug into a mountain.

TV images of the effort showed firefighters Sunday chopping wooden beams to support the effort.

Thursday's collapse occurred after a blast set by the miners themselves.


Rescuers have been able to communicate with the trapped miners and provide them with liquid sustenance through a tube.

Mining is the main engine of Peru's economy, accounting for more than 60 percent of its exports.

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what is this ? a plea for help from the US? the World? is there a phone number we can call?

60% of their economy, you would think they are ready for this eventuality, after 4 days they ask for help? odd. how about the Chinese, can't they help the Peruvians?

  • 1 vote
Reply#1 - Mon Apr 9, 2012 2:02 AM EDT

No doubt with the Chinese courting South America for oil and resources they will step up with the equipment free of charge. America has been helping free of charge for some time but it makes you wonder just how long we will help South America while they export their drugs and crime to the US and buy nothing for us. But then the only thing America is exporting is our police military force which we also pay for.

  • 1 vote
#1.1 - Wed Apr 11, 2012 12:05 PM EDT
Reply

Here we go again. Reminds me of the Chilean miners incident.

    Reply#2 - Mon Apr 9, 2012 2:42 AM EDT

    Hope these people making such negative comments concerning these minors, hope you never need any life saving help, may you sow what you heap. How about some compassion & mercy.

    • 2 votes
    Reply#3 - Mon Apr 9, 2012 4:24 AM EDT

    I do have compassion for the miners trapped in the cave and do think that we should do something to try and help free them. That being, said save the environment does have a point- when mining is such a huge portion of the nations economy it should fall on the shoulders of companies doing the mining or the government if the industry is nationalized or some combination of the 2 to have the equipment to deal with these sorts of contingencies. It's also true that Peru is a very mountainous country and prone to earthquakes and this sort of equipment would be useful in the event of an avalanche or collapse of a large building caused by an earthquake.

    • 1 vote
    #3.1 - Mon Apr 9, 2012 6:56 AM EDT
    Reply

    Since they have air and liquid, the miners have time on their side. If they need heavy equipment there are plenty of countries around the world that can provide it. I hope they are out and home safe soon.

    On another note, is MSNBC killing their Newsvine feature? It seems lately it is harder and harder to find the comments section and it seems they want to tie commentary to facebook? I won't comment if it has to be posted on my facebook page.

    • 3 votes
    Reply#4 - Mon Apr 9, 2012 5:57 AM EDT

    I agree on both counts. I hope that they are able to get these miners out safely.

    I am also getting sick of this push to use Facebook for commenting on articles. I neither have, nor want a Facebook account, so this push means that I can not participate in the discussions on many articles. Does MSNBC have a stake in Facebook?!?! It would seem that they must since they are doing what they can to help out Facebook by driving traffic to the site. If this continues, not only will Facebook not get my traffic, but MSNBC will lose it as well. I will go find another news site that does not try and force me to a third party site to discuss news articles.

    • 2 votes
    #4.1 - Mon Apr 9, 2012 7:58 AM EDT

    My issue with posting my comments on Facebook is that facebook is a place for family and friends to keep up with what is going on in each others lives. Comments related to news articles are NOT something I want on my facebook page. My views may not be shared by the people I know and I do not want to end up engaged in debate with them over articles in the news. Further, it is now common practice for potential employers to scrutinize facebook pages and a controversial comment could cost someone a chance for a job.

    Facebook is NOT the place for commentary on the latest newsworthy events. Facebook is another way technology is being used to pigeon hole everyone. It is also robbing us of our privacy. For all the blessings technology brings, there are negatives. Our reactions to news articles reveals a great deal about our beliefs and our politics. I enjoy sharing on sites like this one and believe the freedom to post somewhat anonymously allows everyone to really say what they think. Sure there are trolls and people who just want to stir the pot but this is still preferable to having my view on an article thrust before me during holiday gatherings with the family.

    If newsvine and sites like it go away, so will I. I guess the data miners will have to pick someone else's feeble mind.

    • 2 votes
    #4.2 - Mon Apr 9, 2012 11:10 AM EDT

    I entirely agree with you Sighber, I'm disappointed with the Facebook thing as well.

    if I wanted to go public I'd just post my resume along a profile and my legal name. For safety issues we are not invisible to the Law anyhow. so our thoughts, etc are being commercialized and I don't like it. Furthermore I am disappointed by the lack of option in the business section to post our opinions. I guess money is so emotional that they don't want to "hear it", lots of negative on that front lately. Maybe they are afraid of the "negative influence".

    • 1 vote
    #4.3 - Mon Apr 9, 2012 12:53 PM EDT
    Reply

    This is just another example of Obama's incompetence. First, he sets up these poor countries to supply us with all the raw materials needed to build him vacation places, then he sits back and blames it on the Republicans saying they obstruct everything he tries to do. This media is out of hand. Why would it be reporting problems in Argentina when we have so many black people running around stealing all our stuff? I call it biased reporting, don't you?

      Reply#5 - Mon Apr 9, 2012 7:56 AM EDT

      Yes, who on earth would expect to find news from another country in the News of the World section of a Newsite?

      And blaming this on President Obama? The word bias does come to mind (along with racist, paranoid & ignorant) but it has nothing to do with the reporting and everything to do with your post.

      • 2 votes
      #5.1 - Mon Apr 9, 2012 8:42 AM EDT

      Way to boost people's perception of your State, Tex.

      And it's Peru, not Argentina.

        #5.2 - Mon Apr 9, 2012 2:26 PM EDT
        Reply

        Its only on this leftie media because Obama was born in Perugentina, right? You two just dont understand the lies that come out of the right wing lately. I thought everything tragic is Obama's fault:>

          Reply#6 - Tue Apr 10, 2012 8:25 AM EDT
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