The massive efforts to rescue 10 Mexican coal miners who had been trapped in a flooded deposit for over four days has ended with little progress with hopes of reaching any survivors dwindling.
This has caused an unrest among some of their relatives.
More than 300 soldiers and other personnel, including six military scuba divers, have joined the bid to free the miners in the northern state of Coahuila following Wednesday’s accident, the government said.
Liliana Torres, the niece of one of the 10 workers, told reporters on Saturday night that she had witnessed the relentlessness of rescuers who “do not stop all day”, but added that the families were increasingly “desperate”.
The water inside the flooded mine has only receded about 9.5 meters (31 feet) from the initial 34 feet, according to a report given to the relatives by the authorities at the end of Saturday’s effort, and divers have been unable to enter.
President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador had earlier declared Saturday “a decisive day” for the operation.
“According to the experts, we’ll know if it’s possible for the divers to enter safely,” he tweeted.
The main problem has been the flooding, he said, adding that the pumping equipment was working at full capacity.
After Saturday ended without success, some families joined a mass near their improvised camp in the community of Agujita.
The Coahuila State prosecutor’s office said it had interviewed the five workers who managed to escape from the crudely constructed mine.
“Apparently they were expelled by a torrent of water,” Coahuila attorney general Gerardo Marquez told the press.
He added that his office had requested information from the landowner and mine concession holder, but declined to name them.
Authorities said that the miners had been carrying out excavation work on three mine shafts that descended 60 meters (200 feet) when they hit an adjoining area full of water.
Experts detected a leak coming from nearby mines and are trying to find its exact location so they can stop water from flowing into the area where the workers are trapped, said Coahuila’s labor secretary, Nazira Zogbi.
A French company has provided equipment to assist in the task, she said, without naming the firm.
