A tragic landslide occurred in the Erzincan district of Turkey, trapping nine workers at a goldmine. According to state media reports, four people were detained, including the field manager, as an investigation into the incident began.
After the disaster, Canada-based SSR Mining Inc. halted its work and production, attributing the incident to a “large slip on the heap leach pad”. The mine, operated by Turkey-based Lidya Madencilik and Calik Holding, along with U.S.-based SSR Mining Company, is SSR’s second-largest gold-producing mine, producing 56,768 ounces of gold in the third quarter of last year.
Around 1700 personnel, including 300 rescue workers, are currently involved in the rescue operations at the mine. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya stated, “Our search and rescue operations will continue non-stop, day and night. Our hope is for good news, and we are working towards that goal.”
The landslide, which occurred at a speed of 10 meters per second, displaced around 200 meters of hillside slide, moving approximately 10 million cubic meters of earth. There are concerns about water pollution due to the nearby presence of cyanide in the soil resulting from regular leach mining activities.
While the operating company Anagold stated that no pollution was detected after conducting sample tests in the area, satellite imagery shows the scale of the landslide, with heaps of earth gathered over the area, spilling into the mine and causing widespread destruction.