Tuesday, August 25, 2015

4 Small Scale Miners In Itogon, Benguet Die After Succumbing To Gas Poisoning

Four small scale gold miners in Itogon, Benguet died in two separate cases of gas poisoning last Sunday (August 23). Around 2 pm on said date, Bambi Dongla (28 years old) inhaled poisonous gases which caused him to lose consciousness inside a mine tunnel located at Baguio Gold, Tuding, Itogon. Dongla's companion Ismael Sadya-as (25 years old) entered the tunnel to rescue Dongla but he was also overwhelmed by the suffocating gases inside the tunnel.

Tula Mateo (53 years old), a foreman at the mine tunnel, also tried to rescue the two trapped miners but he too succumbed to the gases. All three men died. Their bodies were retrieved from the tunnel by rescuers during the night.

Also on the same day, the lifeless body of Abe Danao Amyao (23 years old) was recovered from another tunnel which is also located in Tuding. According to the Itogon police, the victim's brother noticed that Abe wasn't inside their bunk house. So he called another miner and entered their tunnel to find Abe. They found the unmoving body of Abe inside the tunnel, brought him out, and rushed him to a nearby medical center but he was pronounced dead on arrival by the attending physician.

It can be recalled that two pocket miners also perished just two weeks ago on August 7 inside their tunnel located in Antamok, Ucab, Itogon. The two miners were identified as Eddie Latigo (50 years old) and Jonas Isang (24 years old). The two men got trapped inside their tunnel when a landslide blocked the entrance. The men were already dead when they were found by rescuers16 hours later.
Image credit: 911metallurgist.com