Due to heavy snowfall, the country’s largest gold mine suspended its activity and evacuated its employees by helicopter

The largest gold mine in Argentina, Veladero, preventively suspended production and had to make air transfers to look for the workers. Similar situations were experienced in the Fénix lithium project and the Los Azules copper project.

The gold operation located in San Juan, controlled by Barrick and the Chinese company Shandong Gold, reported thatand keeps its productive activities paralyzed as long as adverse weather conditions persist.

Only the teams responsible for essential functionssuch as supervision, critical infrastructure maintenance and environmental management, who continue to be housed in the camp with the supplies necessary to remain in place.

As the weather began to provide some windows of stability, the company initiated preventive air transfers for part of the workersbecause the access roads remain closed and clearing tasks are being carried out. As explained by the company, flights are carried out in a planned manner and only when weather conditions and technical evaluations allow safe operation.

The climate phenomenon also reached Catamarca, where Rio Tinto preventively suspended the operations of the Fénix lithium project, in the Salar del Hombre Muerto.

The company confirmed that it managed to rescue the 14 people, including employees and contractors, who had been isolated by the storm and that some of them were transferred by air and land to carry out medical checks. In addition, he warned that access to the project remains restricted and that it will be necessary to carry out technical evaluations and repair work before resuming activity.

After the operation, the AOMA Catamarca union questioned the application of the prevention protocols and anticipated that it will promote an investigation to determine if there were flaws in the measures adopted by the company in the face of weather alerts.

In San Juan, the storm also forced the plans for the Los Azules copper project to be modified, one of the main initiatives that is preparing to enter the construction stage. The company decided to preventively demobilize the Candadito camp, located more than 3,100 meters above sea level, given the forecasts of heavy snowfall and the possibility that adverse conditions would last for several days.

The operation included the transfer of 37 workers in a caravan escorted by heavy machinery, emergency brigades and an ambulance, while the company clarified that the camp had a supply of water, fuel, gas and food, but chose to withdraw the personnel to avoid their exposure to a risk scenario.

The National Meteorological Service maintains the orange alert for snowfall in the area of ​​the Andes Mountains in Mendoza, which implies the presence of “dangerous meteorological phenomena for society, life, property and the environment.” While in San Juan and Catamarca, the alert went from orange to yellow, expecting “possible meteorological phenomena with the potential for damage and risk of momentary interruption of daily activities.”