A deadly fire broke out on Saturday in a small gold mine in southern Peru, resulting in the death of 27 people, which marks the nation’s deadliest mining accident in over two decades. The cause of the blaze was determined to be a short circuit that occurred in the early hours of Saturday morning in the southern region of Arequipa, according to a statement from the local government.
The mine is operated by a small-scale firm named Yanaquihua, as per reports.
Thick, dark smoke could be seen rising from the mine in images taken by local media. A local prosecutor, Giovanni Matos, confirmed on Sunday that 27 people had died. Peru is the world’s largest gold producer and second-largest copper producer. According to the nation’s Ministry of Energy and Mines, this incident is the deadliest mining accident since 2000. In 2002, the highest number of deaths in different mining accidents occurred, with 73 fatalities.
Mining accidents in Peru in 2022 resulted in 38 deaths, highlighting safety concerns in Latin American mining.
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