JAKARTA - Deputy Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (Wamen ESDM) Yuliot Tanjung revealed that seven PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI) workers who were trapped in the Grasberg Block Cave underground mine, in Mimika Regency, Central Papua, have yet to be found.
Yuliot explained that the evacuation team had dug up two new tunnels to reach the location of the workers. However, the workers were no longer found there.
"So the two new tunnels have arrived at the starting location, at the place where the employee was trapped. But the person concerned is not at the location," said Yuliot when met at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Jakarta, Friday, September 12.
Shortly after the landslide occurred, Yuliot continued, workers trapped were still able to communicate with Freeport's team on the ground using a handy talkie (HT).
From this communication, said Yuliot, it was found that the initial location of the workers were trapped. So that the evacuation team is estimated to reach that point within 30 hours.
"The 30-hour one has arrived at the location point (with) additional new tunnels, but this one that has been trapped has not been found," he explained.
Currently, said Yuliot, communication between the Freeport team and trapped workers has been cut off. According to him, the possibility of HT being the means of communication is no longer working because the battery is running out.
Yuliot said the mining conditions themselves consisted of many winding tunnels. Even so, he ensured that the search would continue to be carried out to find the latest locations of trapped workers.
"So this communication may run out of battery or something, this has lost communication. But the team in the field is trying to see which tunnel is heading," he said.
Yuliot said, in this evacuation effort, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources team was also involved in the field. Yuliot ensured that efforts to save the trapped workers were carried out.
"Because the conditions are a bit different from the initial estimate, this is done as soon as possible," he said.
Previously, PT Freeport Indonesia President Director Tony Wenas said his staff had mobilized all the resources they had to save seven workers who are still trapped in the Grasberg Block Cave (GBC) underground mining area in Tembagapura, Mimika, Central Papua.
Tony Wenas said he and the management of PTFI were present in Tembagapura to provide full support for efforts to save the seven workers who were still trapped in the large number of wet ore mud landslides since Monday, September 8, 2025 night.
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"Our focus is on the rescue and safety of the seven employees and all employees in the work area. We are trying our best. We focus on all the power of effort, energy and resources to save the seven employees," Wenas said as quoted by ANTARA, Friday, September 12.
Tony said the toughest challenge faced to evacuate the seven workers who were still trapped was the wet ore mud material that entered the GBC underground mining area, which was very large.
"The landslide material is far more than we expected, so it requires extra handling and longer time. Until now there is still movement from the base ore mud," he said.
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