Notes

Fortuna Silver Mine -- Bolivian Health plus Safety
Potosi silver quarry in Bolivia was set up by the Spanish with slave labour in 1545. 465 years has not shown a great improvement in operating conditions.

A pay a visit to to the mine begins in the local marketplace within the town. Here you can get goods to help the miners in their do the job. For 10 Bolivianos (1 pound) you can purchase them 2 litres of soda and also a large packet associated with coca leaves. If you want, you can likewise buy them cigarettes (made from marijuana), alcohol (96% proof) or sticks involving dynamite, fuses or perhaps nitrates to make the explosion more powerful.

The mines of Potosi dominate the surroundings. That they are located on the Cerro Rico (rich mountain) which rises upwards some 600m only beyond the outskirts of the city. The mines have provided wealth and resources to typically the town for almost 500 years, in addition to the mountain by itself is included within religious paintings from colonial times, portrayed as the centre regarding the world.

The mine complex sprawls up the side of the mountain: ramshackle corrugated iron shacks, a couple of pick way up trucks and 4WD jeeps, and lumps associated with rubble piled large. These are the exterior signs of the particular work which takes place within.

However the mines are named cooperatives, it will be really only the network of tunnels which is owned throughout common. The miners and pit staff do not reveal the profits associated with the mine. Each and every miner works with regard to himself, getting an operation to mine anywhere he thinks might prove profitable. Usually miners work in teams: father and son, brother with sibling. 3% with the personnel there are right now women.

If some sort of profitable seam will be found then the particular miner may subcontact others to support extract the sterling silver or other nutrients for him. Almost all raw materials are usually then brought in order to the surface and distributed to waiting vans from the refinery who will next get it to the factory for cleansing.

If there is nothing discovered, then the miners receive no cash. There are a few waged workers in the mines working essential services for the miners. These types of people are paid out 6 Bolivianos (60p) one hour, for a ten hour time.

A 18% taxes is deducted coming from the miners�income. This really is used to pay out for the upkeep of the mine and to supply them with some type of pension, health in addition to social security cover up. The boys are allowed in order to retire at 66, though they could keep earlier should they suffer from ill wellness.

Miners can start work when they will choose, and job as long because they require each time - though generally they arrive at 8am and abandon at 5pm. A great old lady appears at the entry for the mine counting the miners in, to ensure there is definitely some record involving how many men and women are inside within the event regarding an accident.

Even though some 8 million slaves (African and indigenous Indians) died in the mines in the time that these people were run by simply the Spanish, casualties in the fosse today are relatively rare. These happen to be usually cases involving carbon monoxide poisoning.

Far more common are definitely the early death and health connected issues affecting typically the lungs. Asbestos and other harmful silicates occur naturally inside the mines, and the atmosphere is in addition thick with dirt from the gold mining activities.

Entry in the mines is via a simple hole created into the aspect of the mountain. Typically the mines stretch down some 150m : some considerable depth, yet not enough in order to warrant using comes, so all development must be made on foot.

A narrow set associated with rails lies along every passage intended for the wagons which in turn move materials around the mines. A totally laded wagon weighs in at installment payments on your 5 loads and is pulled by simply a team of four men. website is easy, as the men often just sit inside and let the wagon rotate naturally along the particular gentle slopes. Even though the moving wagon is almost impossible to stop, and right now there is virtually little space between it is edge and the particular tunnel walls.

Up movement, however , is slow despite an unloaded truck. At one particular stage in the particular visit, it absolutely was needed for several people of the group to join throughout together with the men to move the wagon up a really large section of monitor.

The passageways within the mines themselves usually are narrow: stooping low is needed at most times, even inside the relatively roomy sections. Most involving the time, it was important to stroll along half squatting; and in many sections the simply option was to crawl along palms and knees.

Plumbing run throughout the passageways, frequently crossing all of them from one side to the some other making the roof even lower. These kinds of pipes were to provide oxygen to be able to the mine network and served 3 purposes: to supply fresh air to the biggest areas where it was almost not existent, the supply general ventilation towards the passageways, and in order to give oxygen to some with the machinery that operated inside of the mines.

Occasionally it was achievable to hear the hiss in the oxygen coming from the pipes since it was introduced in the tunnels nearby. Even in these places air felt weighty and thick, because they were significantly away from the particular entrances to typically the mines and virtually any source of natural oxygen.

When considering oxygenation in typically the mines is ought to not be forgotten that Potosi is usually the highest town in the world at 4200m above sea level, in addition to the mines themselves closer to 4600m - only just below the height associated with Mont Blanc. Also outside, the atmosphere only contains regarding half the oxygen available at sea level.

During typically the visit into the mines, which survived around 2 hours, it was possible to fulfill with several regarding people who performed there and discuss with them.

The particular first was typically the oldest man inside of the mine. He was now 70 and had performed there for typically the last 30 years. We were told that this was outstanding - most men just worked there in their 20s and even 30s. When asked how long this individual would carry on and work in the acquire he replied which he would stay right up until he was seventy unless he seemed to be forced out prior by ill well being.

At present having been resting, for he was waiting for typically the men to come back using the loaded chariot, so these could possibly be emptied into a new large basked to be able to transport the rubble up to the surface.

Another people was working aside in a chamber chiseling out a small niche for his / her stick of dynamite. It was hot in this reduce region of the mine, and he sweated as he regularly banged the chisel into the rock above his brain. Its almost semed impossible to reach him, intended for he was hidden away behind a big pile of trash plus a wooden wheelbarrow, for the far area of a gaping 1m square hole inside the ground.

Typically the dynamite sticks are usually small, in support of hit away a tiny region of rock. The particular fuses are started around 3-4 a few minutes. In an wide open space this offers ample time for you to get a far distance away from the explosion; but in typically the cramped confines involving the mines, it is not necessarily possible to move a fantastic distance found in this time. It absolutely was possible to see many marks found in the walls through where previous explosions had been produced.

After a several minutes the man came out and declared he was carried out for the afternoon. He or she had arrived with the mine from 4am, and acquired worked for about 8hrs or so. The dynamite would be set the next day.

Having been in his mid 50s; but did not necessarily think he might work for a lot longer on account regarding the health issues with his lungs. Many of us gave him some of the juice and cocaÃna leaves which having been very pleased together with. A number of people got also bought cigs at the market, in addition to he happily acknowledged a packet involving these also.

Another man was sitting in what passed as being the rest area associated with the mine. Any time I asked your pet what he has been mining for, this individual replied that because well as searching for silver, he wished to find topaz due to the fact that this was a very valuable mineral.

The particular men live on practically nothing but cocaÃna leaves, and will be continually chewing these people from the large case. They reckon in getting through 3 hand bags a day. The coca prevents fatigue, inhibits appetite and offers energy.

The cocaÃna seems to function also as some sort of cure for just about all ills. We were told that inspite of the sum of dust and asbestos in the particular air the miners did not want masks, since the coca leaves dished up as being a filter. A single of the party injured her nose when banging in the low ceilings instructions and a cocaÃna leaf was right away applied to the influenced spot for a numb the pain preventing the particular swelling.

Making each of our way out in the mines, we in addition passed by the particular statue of Theo - a bigger than life size wooden representation regarding the devil which often served as a good luck symbol for the miners.

They acquired adopted the physique of the devil in the time of the The spanish language occupation. The Spanish language had told these people that Jesus in addition to God ruled more than the world associated with light at first glance regarding the earth, but that the underworld and everything below typically the surface was your dominion of the devil. Since they worked under ground it was not proper that they should look to God, but accept their place among typically the disciples with the devil.

Each day typically the miners place some sort of lighted cigarette and a coca loose tea leaf in the mouth area of the devil as an offering for good luck. In Fridays they furthermore provide him alcohol: some sort of drop on the mouth for desire, a drop on each corner of his torso for your four points involving the compass, in addition to a drop in his penis with regard to fertility. It is definitely important to make use of the purest form associated with alcohol possible due to the fact this will make sure that will only the most natural minerals and treasures are found.

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