Chile: Six miners trapped in El Teniente found dead

Chilean authorities confirmed the death of six miners at the El Teniente deposit after they were trapped for days by a landslide that blocked access to the mine.

A 4.2-magnitude earthquake shook the mine on Thursday, leaving one dead that same day and nine injured. The other five fatalities were found over the weekend.

In the evening, hundreds of people gathered outside the offices of Codelco, Chile's state-owned mining company and at the entrance to the mine, to light candles in memory of the six dead miners.

Chilean President Gabriel Boric confirmed Sunday the discovery of the dead miners. "I send a fraternal embrace to their families, co-workers and the entire mining community of our country in these difficult moments," he said and declared three days of national mourning.

"To the search and rescue teams, my appreciation for their tireless work that allowed finding all their colleagues. In an accident of this nature, it is essential to clarify the facts and to assert the corresponding responsibilities. For the miners and their families: there must be justice and clarification of what happened,” he said.

"From today begins a key stage, the investigation, and I want to be clear: Codelco has actively collaborated until now and will continue to do so with everything that is necessary to clarify every detail of this tragedy," said the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the company, Máximo Pacheco.

El Teniente has almost 4,000 workers employed directly and another 15,000 through subcontractors. It is the largest subway copper deposit in the world, with 4,500 km (2,800 miles) of underground galleries.