February 3, 2026 | 09:46 am
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Seven illegal tin mine workers were buried alive after the wall of a mine at their location collapsed on Monday afternoon, February 2, 2026, at around 5:00 PM Western Indonesian Time (WIB).
The incident occurred while 12 workers at the former Pondi Mine in Pemali Village, Sungailiat District, Bangka Regency, Indonesia, were operating an excavator. This activity caused the ground to shift and shift, crushing the workers.
Mikel Rachman Junika, Head of the Pangkalpinang Search and Rescue (SAR) Office, stated that the incident resulted in seven people being buried, while five others managed to escape.
"Of the seven people buried, five were found dead, and two others are still being searched for because they were still buried under the landslide material," said Mikel.
According to Mikel, his office launched a SAR operation by deploying a team to search for the remaining victims. The search process, he said, continued into the evening.
"The rescue team must be careful because the landslide site is very dangerous and prone to further landslides. This is our challenge in searching for the victims," he said.
Anggi Budiman Siahaan, Head of Corporate Communications at PT Timah Tbk, said the landslide site is within PT Timah's Mining Business Permit (IUP) area. However, he stated that the mining activity that caused the landslide was illegal, meaning it did not have a permit from PT Timah.
"The mining activity is not part of the company's operations, even though it is within the IUP area. We express our condolences for the tragedy. The company is assisting in the search for victims by deploying heavy equipment. Some of the recovered victims have been taken to the hospital and then released to their families," he said.
Anggi added that the company reminds all miners and business partners to always comply with Occupational Safety and Health (K3) regulations and provisions in all mining operations.
"We all hope that this incident and disaster will not happen again in the future. Let's prioritize K3 principles consistently in all mining processes," he said.
Read: Lombok Police Shut Down Illegal Gold Mine After Collapse Injures 3
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