Two female miners have reportedly died during a landslide on Bali’s Nusa Penida. One of the deceased was just a teenager while the other was a senior citizen.
Nusa Penida, a small island southeast of the mainland in Bali’s Klungkung regency, is prized for its jutting coastal limestone cliffs.
The accident happened on Thursday afternoon, around 3:30 pm at Batumadeg Village, according to local reports.
There had been four female miners working at the village’s mining site in Banjar Peutuk, identified in reports as Ni Kadek Widiantini, 16, Ni Ketut Tangkis, 80, Komang Daliantini, 12, and Ni Komang Surani, 40.
“They were manually digging on a rock mound five meters tall. Limestone mounds had formed from previous excavations using heavy equipment, so the ground was still unstable,” Nusa Penida police chief I Ketut Suastika told Tribun Bali.
When they were digging, a landslide was apparently triggered. Three of the women were buried, but one got away and was able to get help. But by the time the group could be dug out, it was apparently already too late for Widiantini and Tangkis.
“After receiving the report, we immediately set up a police line and asked for witness testimonies. We are still investigating,” Suastika said.
The mining done at the site had been illegal, the police chief said.
“The mining there was illegal and legal action will be taken. Today, the land owner and his wife were questioned,” the police chief said.
While limestone on a smaller scale can be found in Nusa Penida, police say it’s technically not allowed for commercial purposes because it’s being done without permits. But landowners will often justify mining activities by saying they are using their own land for their own purposes—though in the end, the limestone may end up getting sold anyway, according to Suastika.
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