DAVAO CITY (July 14, 2003)—A combined team from the DENR-Diwalwal Direct State Utilization Project Team, the local government units (LGU) and the miners cooperative successfully rescued on Friday the three (3) small-scale miners who were trapped for five days from the recent cave-in in the gold-rich Diwalwal Mineral Reservation.

The rescued miners were identified as Francisco Pundulan, 53, Bartolome Llido, 30, both of Monkayo, Compostella Valley, and Efren Maglente, 33, of Pagadian. They were immediately brought to the Tagum Regional Hospital for procedural check-up.

Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) Region 11 Director Malou Jacinto accounted the successful operation from the persistent operation of the combined forces of the DENR-MGB's Technical Working Group (TWG), the Natural Resources Development Corp. (NRDC), LGU-Bgy. Mt. Diwata and the small-scale miner-members of the Kalayaan Mining Development Cooperative, the contractor of the accident site.

"The thrust was really to get them alive. So for five days, our team along with the volunteer small-scale miners did not stop until they got them," Jacinto said.

On July 7, 2003 at about 6:00 in the evening, a minor cave-in occurred at Level 730 of the Australia Tunnel, which filled the lower portion of the 5W Position sinking shaft and the collar of the SPL sub-level with debris. During the incident, the three miners were working at the SPL Destino, about 15 meters from the gate of the sub-level, and were trapped by debris.

The incident was immediately reported to the DENR-MGB TWG and the NRDC, who quickly responded by conducting the rescue. The rescue operation was officially concluded at around 10:20 in the morning on July 11, 2003.

Because of the mine accident, additional thorough safety assessment of all underground workings of Kalayaan Mining will be undertaken by the Project Team. The DENR-MGB TWG is continually conducting safety lectures/trainings among small-scale miners in Diwalwal in order to instill among the miners the need for safety consciousness to prevent mine accident. (MGB Region 11)