Three young people have died in Spain following the collapse of a tunnel in one of the largest potash mines in western Europe, officials have confirmed.
It is understood that the three geology students were inspecting the interior of the Cabanasses de Súria mine when the incident happened at around 9:00a.m on Thursday (March 9).
Two of the victims of the accident were master’s students at the Higher Polytechnic School of Engineering of Manresa (EPSEM) of the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC), one of whom was doing a company internship.
The third person was studying for a doctorate at the University of Barcelona (UB), UPC said in a statement.
Yesterday, the EPSEM held a minute of silence in memory of the victims and has suspended master’s classes until next week.
Another minute of silence will be observed on all UPC university campuses today, which will also be attended by the Spanish Minister of Science and Innovation, Diana Morant.
Mine
In a translated statement on Twitter, the Catalan leader, Pere Aragones i Garcia said:
“Unfortunately, we have to confirm the death of three young people in the Suria mine accident.
“I want to convey my condolences to the families, friends and colleagues, the government of Catalonia is at your disposal and all of Bages.
“We also extend our thanks to the emergency teams,” he said.
The mine at Suria, which is located around 50km from Barcelona, is operated by Iberpotash, a subsidiary of the Tel Aviv-based ICL Group Ltd.
The company has launched an investigation into the cause of the collapse.
“We are in mourning. We regret the tragic accident that took place this morning at the Cabanasses mine.
“We send our sincere condolences and offer all the support to the family, friends and colleagues of the three miners,” ICL Iberia (Iberpotash) said in a social media post.
Potash
Potash is commonly used as a fertiliser in agriculture and as a raw material in the pharmaceutical, explosives, glassmaking and chemicals industries.
According to the ICL website, Iberpotash operates mines in the province of Barcelona, approximately 530-900m below ground.
As the only producer of potash in Spain, ICL Iberia exports 80% of its production to various countries in the EU, Asia and the Americas.
Extracting potash from underground mines in Spain is conducted by mining sylvinite, a mixture of potash and salt found in varying concentrations.
The potash is then separated from the salt at production plants located near the mines.