The National Copper Corporation of Chile (Codelco) has reported that all five workers trapped in the El Teniente mine located in the Andes Mountains of central Chile have died following a powerful tremor that caused a collapse.
The incident, which began on Thursday night on 31 July 2025 with a 4.2 magnitude earthquake in central Chile, resulted in days of rescue efforts that ultimately proved unsuccessful.
The Chilean state-owned copper company first announced on Saturday, 2 August 2025, that one worker had been found dead.
On Sunday morning, search teams located three more bodies, with the last discovered later that afternoon. These fatalities bring the total death toll from the incident to six, as one worker was already confirmed dead at the time of the accident.
Rescue operations commenced on Friday with approximately 100 personnel involved but faced significant delays due to continuing aftershocks. Codelco revealed that by the conclusion of these efforts, only 25.5m of blocked passages had been cleared out of the 90m needed to reach the trapped individuals.
El Teniente general manager Andrés Music said: “From day one, we committed to doing everything humanly possible. It wasn’t the outcome I expected, but we managed to reach them and bring them back with the respect and dignity they deserve.”
Following the collapse, Chile’s Mining Minister Aurora Williams, declared a suspension of all activities at El Teniente. Codelco has initiated an investigation into whether seismic activity alone was responsible for the collapse or if mining operations contributed to the disaster.
Codelco’s chairman, Maximo Pacheco, stated that international experts would be engaged to investigate the cause and evaluate any missteps.
El Teniente is recognised as the world’s largest underground copper operation. It spans over 4,500km of tunnels in the Andes Mountains, and is located approximately 75km southeast of Santiago.
In 2024, it produced 356,000 metric tonnes of copper, maintaining its status among top global producers.
