23 miners rescued after 43 hours trapped in Colombian gold mine
[September 25, 2025]
By ASTRID SUÁREZ
BOGOTA,
Colombia (AP) — Twenty-three workers were rescued Wednesday after
spending 43 hours trapped in a collapsed underground gold mine in
northern Colombia. The miners were met with applause as they emerged
from the La Reliquia mine, located in the Antioquia department. |

Yuliana Andrea Agudelo embraces her son Sebastian Agudelo after he was
rescued from a gold mine that had collapsed trapping over 20 miners, in
Segovia, Colombia, Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Santiago
Saldarriaga) |
Colombia's National Mining Agency reported that the main
entrance to the mine had collapsed on Monday due to a
“geomechanical failure.” A video released by the ANM shows the
first rescued miners walking out under their own power, using a
rope to climb the steep entrance to the shaft. Their health
status was not immediately disclosed.
The miners’ families had been waiting for hours and celebrated
their rescue with tears and applause.
The mine is on land belonging to Canada's Aris Mining Corp. but
is operated by a local mining cooperative. Aris Mining said
earlier that it had provided the trapped workers with food,
water and ventilation during the rescue efforts. The mine has
about 60 employees and accounts for a “small portion” of the
company’s total gold production in the area.
Aris runs two mining concessions in Colombia, which last year
produced about 6.6 tons of gold. Colombia’s gold production
climbed to 67 tons per year in 2024, supported by high prices
for the precious metal.
A report published in 2023 by Colombia’s Human Rights Ombudsman
said that more than 80% of Colombia’s gold is mined by informal
operators with no licenses, including artisanal miners but also
members of rebel groups.
The precarious conditions at some gold mines in Colombia have
led to fatal accidents. On Saturday the bodies of seven miners
were found at an illegal mine in Cauca province. Rescue teams
took nine days to reach the trapped workers.
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