Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — Five people were killed and five others were still unaccounted for when an open pit coal mine in Semirara Island in Visayas collapsed on Friday (July 17) due to a landslide caused by heavy monsoon rain.
The Department of Energy (DOE) said on Friday that based on preliminary information, the incident occurred on Friday at 3:30 a.m. at the north edge of the Panian mine site.
Nine workers of the Semirara Mining & Power Corp. (SMPC) were involved in the incident.
As of 6:30 a.m., three bodies have been recovered and confirmed dead. Six others are still missing and search and rescue operations are ongoing.
SMPC Chief Executive Officer Isidro Consunji confirmed that the nine workers were buried alive by the landslide.
“Three bodies have been recovered as of this time and digging continues to look for six others,” he said. “That’s as far as I know. Some of our mining equipment has also [sic] been damaged. We don’t have the complete details yet.”
The DOE has also ordered the immediate suspension of SMPC.
An investigation committee will also be formed by the DOE to investigate the incident.
Fifty-six percent of SMPC, which is the country’s largest coal miner, is owned by DMCI Holdings Inc.
