VIDEO 10,000 illegal workers expelled by the army from a clandestine gold mine in Venezuela

About 10,000 illegal workers were expelled by the army on Tuesday from an area surrounding the clandestine gold mine that collapsed in February, killing at least 16 in southern Venezuela.

The La Bulla Loca mine was “closed and evacuated for violating the legal territorial order of forest reserves in the state of Bolivar (south), after more than 10,000 illegal miners who broke the law were expelled,” said General Domingo Hernandez Larez, head of the command strategic operational, according to Agerpres.

He shared a video showing huge craters left by illegal gold mining, as well as dozens of felled trees.

The evacuation of the mine, accessible only through a river, began after the tragedy in February, which caused 16 deaths according to the official balance sheet. Residents say that several people have died.

In the past year, another 14,000 miners have been driven from the Pecan National Park, Venezuela’s largest at 320,000 hectares, located in the neighboring state of Amazonas, where large areas have been devastated by mining.

In the region of Bolivar and Amazonia there are important reserves of gold, diamonds, iron, bauxite and quartz. Mines are operated there by the state, and many others by illegal groups.

Publisher: MB

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