Bodies of four miners trapped in collapsed mine found in Chile

The bodies of four of the five miners who were trapped for three days in a collapsed section of the El Teniente mine, one of the largest copper mines in the Andes in central Chile, have been recovered and identified, an official said today.

The trapped miners were located thanks to GPS devices, but rescuers had to drill through tens of meters of rock to reach them. Rescuers at the mine, located about 100 kilometers south of the capital Santiago, are still searching for a fifth miner, identified as Mojzes Pavez, the mine director said.

Part of the mine collapsed after a 4,2-magnitude earthquake on Thursday, killing one worker and injuring nine.

Authorities are investigating whether the quake was caused by a natural earthquake or by mining operations in El Teniente. Chilean prosecutors have also launched a criminal investigation to determine whether safety standards were violated.

Shortly after the collapse, the Chilean state-owned company Codelco, which owns the mine, suspended work in the affected part of the copper mine and evacuated 3.000 people from the wider area to safe places.

The company canceled the presentation of its financial results for the first half of the year, scheduled for Friday morning, due to the rescue efforts.

Chile, the world's largest copper producer, is located in the seismically active "Ring of Fire" that surrounds the coast of the Pacific Ocean.