Two miners were rescued this Tuesday (08.09.2022) in the Dominican Republic after being trapped in a copper and zinc deposit for 10 days, with no apparent injuries, the company reported.

“The rescue took place at 11:16 a.m. [15h16 GMT] (…) after having accessed it through the new diversion tunnel known as Emergency Route Bone of two routes that had been created since the start of the bailout,” the Dominican Mining Corporation (CORMIDOM), which operates a Canadian concessionaire, said in a statement.

Gregores Méndez, Dominican, and Carlos Yépez Ospina, Colombian, were trapped on July 31 in this mine, located in Cerro de Maimón, about 80 km north of Santo Domingo, after a rockslide, the company said.

More than 70 underground mining experts took part in the rescue, along with 40 other technicians from different regions. A Canadian military aircraft had arrived on August 7 with 26 tonnes of rescue machinery, tools and technology.

President Luis Abinader posted a video in which he greeted Méndez and Yépez, who appeared smiling and with good faces. “The whole country was looking at you, very happy,” the president told them. “We are extremely grateful.” Both were airlifted to a medical center for tests. Before leaving, Abinader prayed with them and the rescue team, and posed for photos.

Yépez said in the video that they had “good conditions in the tunnel: ventilation, hydration, food, everything.” “We also slept comfortably, it made the stay not so bad”, although “the first few days were heartbreaking”, he added. The press did not have access to the rescue area.

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