JAKARTA (AFP): Rescuers on Saturday recovered two bodies from an underground mine operated by Freeport Indonesia in Papua, a police official said, nearly two weeks after a landslide trapped seven workers.
The landslide occurred on September 8 when material from an extraction point flowed at one of five sections of the Grasberg Block Cave underground gold and copper mine in Tembagapura, Central Papua province.
The workers were trapped after the flow closed access and limited evacuation routes, the company said.
The two victims were found on Saturday morning and have been identified as Irawan, 46, and Wigih Hartono, 37, local police chief Billyandha Hildiario Budiman told AFP.
The search for the other five continues, Billyandha said, adding that as of Saturday afternoon, there was no further progress.
Both victims hailed from Indonesia's main island of Java and their bodies are expected to be transported there that same day, he said.
Freeport Indonesia did not immediately respond to AFP's request for comment.
Local media reported that the company's president director, Tony Wenas, confirmed that two bodies had been found and that the operation to find the remaining workers was ongoing.
The company suspended operations at the mine earlier this month to prioritise the rescue.
The Grasberg complex, operated by Freeport Indonesia, is one of the largest gold and copper mines in the world and a frequent flashpoint in Papua's long-running insurgency. - AFP
