The Pasta de Conchos mine disaster occurred at approximately 2:30 a.m. CST on February 19, 2006, after a

methane Methane ( , ) is a chemical compound with the chemical formula (one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms). It is a group-14 hydride, the simplest alkane, and the main constituent of natural gas. The relative abundance of methane on Eart ...

explosion within a

coal mine Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

near

Nueva Rosita Nueva Rosita is a town in the northeastern part of the state of Coahuila in northern Mexico. It lies about northwest of the city of Sabinas on Federal Highway 57, and serves as the municipal seat of San Juan de Sabinas municipality. In 1990 ...

, San Juan de Sabinas municipality, in the

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

Coahuila Coahuila (), formally Coahuila de Zaragoza (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Coahuila de Zaragoza), is one of the 32 states of Mexico. Coahuila borders the Mexican states of N ...

. The mines were run by

Grupo México Grupo México is a Mexican conglomerate that operates through the following divisions: Mining (Minera Mexico), Transportation ( GMxT), Infrastructure and Fundacion Grupo Mexico. Its mining Division is the leading Copper producer in Mexico and t ...

, the largest mining company in the country. It was estimated that 65 miners, who were working the 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. shift that morning, were trapped underground by the explosion. Only 2 of the 65 bodies have been recovered.

Background

There have been conflicting reports regarding the depth at which the miners were trapped. The National Mining and Metal Workers Union (SNTMMSRM) stated that the trapped miners were approximately below ground, via a mile-long horizontal shaft. Grupo México released a statement saying that the miners were about below ground when the explosion occurred. Guadalupe Rosales Martínez, the sister of a worker saved from the mine opening, told the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' that the workers had previously complained about a

gas leak A gas leak refers to a leak of natural gas or another gaseous product from a pipeline or other containment into any area where the gas should not be present. Gas leaks can be hazardous to health as well as the environment. Even a small leak into ...

in the mine.Gas Blast Traps 65 Mexican Miners
''

'', February 19, 2006. Norma Vitela, the wife of a mine worker trapped inside the mine, told ''

The Miami Herald The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by the McClatchy Company and headquartered in Doral, Florida, a city in western Miami-Dade County and the Miami metropolitan area, several miles west of Downtown Miami.Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

of Coahuila,

Humberto Moreira Valdés Humberto Moreira Valdés (born 28 July 1966) is a Mexican politician who served as President of the . He was Governor of the State of Coahuila from 2005 to 2011. Moreira was included in a list of the "10 most corrupt Mexicans" published by '' ...

, told the

Televisa Grupo Televisa is a Mexican multimedia mass media company. A major Latin American mass media corporation, it often presents itself as the largest producer of Spanish-language content. In April 2021, Televisa and Univision Communications announce ...

television network that the mine's ventilation service, which uses fans to import oxygen and export dangerous gases, was still in operation. However, the February 21 edition of ''The Miami Herald'' remarked, "Even so, they could not be certain the precious oxygen was arriving to where the miners were trapped." Rescue crews managed to get through a wall of debris before encountering another wall inside the tunnel, where it was believed at least two conveyor belt operators may have been trapped just behind. Most of the other trapped miners were believed to be between from the entrance of the mine. It was reported that mine workers had gone on

strike Strike may refer to: People *Strike (surname) Physical confrontation or removal *Strike (attack), attack with an inanimate object or a part of the human body intended to cause harm *Airstrike, military strike by air forces on either a suspected ...

against Grupo México at least 14 times, "not only for salary increases… but because of its constant refusal to review security and health measures." Grupo México said that they, in conjunction with the mining union, signed a certificate on February 7, 2006 declaring the mine safe. On February 23, 2006 Grupo México advanced to a part of the mine shaft where they believed two of the 65 workers were trapped. However, they found nobody, leading them to believe the force of the explosion knocked them through the mine shaft deeper than they had anticipated.Search for Mexican miners suspended
''

Diario Diario (Italian, Spanish "Diary") and ''El Diario'' (Spanish, "The Daily") may refer to: Newspapers, periodicals and websites * ''El Diario'' (Argentina) * ''Diario'' (Aruba) * ''El Diario'' (La Paz), Bolivia * ''Diario Extra'' (Costa Rica) *''Di ...

'',

Ciudad Juárez Ciudad Juárez ( ; ''Juarez City''. ) is the most populous city in the Mexican state of Chihuahua. It is commonly referred to as Juárez and was known as El Paso del Norte (''The Pass of the North'') until 1888. Juárez is the seat of the Ju� ...

, February 25, 2006. The next day, Grupo México advanced approximately halfway into the 1.75-mile long mine, where an additional twenty-four miners were expected to have been found. Again, nobody was found, and Grupo México hypothesized that either the miners were buried under

debris Debris (, ) is rubble, wreckage, ruins, litter and discarded garbage/refuse/trash, scattered remains of something destroyed, or, as in geology, large rock fragments left by a melting glacier, etc. Depending on context, ''debris'' can refer to ...

or the miners were located in a deeper part of the mine. On the evening of February 24, Grupo México announced that search efforts were to be suspended for two or three days, due to the search teams advancing to a portion of the mine which leaked out high levels of natural gas. On the afternoon of February 25 the CEO of Grupo México confirmed during a press conference that "there was no possibility of survival after the methane explosion", based on a scientific report.Es oficial, no hay sobrevivientes en mina
'' El Universal Online'',

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

, February 25, 2006. The following day the

Secretary of Labor The United States Secretary of Labor is a member of the Cabinet of the United States, and as the head of the United States Department of Labor, controls the department, and enforces and suggests laws involving unions, the workplace, and all ot ...

, Francisco Javier Salazar Sáenz, and Governor Moreira announced the mine would be closed indefinitely once all the bodies were recovered.Todos están muertos
'' El Universal Online'',

, February 26, 2006. The ''

'' newspaper of

published a report from Mexican officials and the U.S.

Mine Safety and Health Administration The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) () is a large agency of the United States Department of Labor which administers the provisions of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (Mine Act) to enforce compliance with mandatory safet ...

, stating that due to the high levels of gas in the mine, it would be very rare, if not impossible, to have any survivors from the rescue efforts.

Aftermath

After the rescue of 33 trapped miners in October 2010 in

Copiapó Copiapó () is a city and commune in northern Chile, located about 65 kilometers east of the coastal town of Caldera. Founded on December 8, 1744, it is the capital of Copiapó Province and Atacama Region. Copiapó lies about 800 km north ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

, bishop Raúl Vera demanded that the case be reopened. According to the

IndustriALL Global Union IndustriALL Global Union is a global union federation, founded in Copenhagen on 19 June 2012. IndustriALL Global Union represents more than 50 million working people in more than 140 countries, working across the supply chains in mining, energy a ...

, as of August 2016, "Ten years after the mining homicide at Pasta de Conchos, Mexico, the government has still not conducted a thorough investigation into the real causes of the disaster, brought those responsible to justice, recovered the bodies or compensated the families of the victims."

Recovery operation

On February 18, 2020, the Mexican government announced it would resume the search for 63 bodies still lost in the accident. ''Grupo México'' insisted they voluntarily returned the concession to the government. Families of the victims say the company did not conduct a thorough search because they did not want the deplorable working conditions revealed; company officials insist it is too dangerous to carry out the rescue operation. In 2018 the

Inter-American Commission on Human Rights The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (the IACHR or, in the three other official languages Spanish, French, and Portuguese CIDH, ''Comisión Interamericana de los Derechos Humanos'', ''Commission Interaméricaine des Droits de l'Homme'', ...

agreed with the families. President Lopez Obrador promised in 2019 that he would recover the bodies. The government and family members reached an agreement on September 14,

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

. The bodies of the miners would be rescued, a memorial will be built, and the 65 families will be compensated by the end of the year. The estimated US$75 million cost will be financed by the CFE through sale of the coal from the mine. President

Andrés Manuel López Obrador Andrés Manuel López Obrador (; born 13 November 1953), also known by his initials AMLO, is a Mexican politician who has been serving as the 65th president of Mexico since 1 December 2018. He previously served as Head of Government of Mexico ...

(AMLO) announced on February 19, 2021, the 15th anniversary of the accident, that rescue efforts had begun. He expressed hope that the rescue effort would be completed by the end of his term in office.

References

{{reflist 2006 mining disasters Coal mining disasters in Mexico History of Coahuila 2006 in Mexico Political scandals in Mexico February 2006 events in North America 2006 disasters in Mexico