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Published: September 27th 2007
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Danger - High Explosives
getting my hands on a stick of dynamite! The newly formed travelling team of myself, Theresa and Steve headed to Potosi next, to visit a working silver mine, and experience the inhuman conditions that these miners are reputed to work under. We were also going to blow things up with dynamite.
Potosi is the highest city in the world at a height of roughly 4,000m. For a while it was also the richest city in the world. The invading Spanish found vast quantities of silver in the earth near Potosi, and were well chuffed. Apparently the Spanish Government found enough silver to have built a transatlantic road of silver stretching from South America to Spain. Not that such a thing would be possible of course. As we all know, silver does not float. And not that the Spanish actually mined the silver themselves. They used the indigenous population, and forced them to work under barbaric conditions. They would have to live and work underground for a period of six months at a time. When they came out, their eyes would have to be bandaged to prevent damage from the sunlight. Their working shifts would be between 24 and 36 hours, without food or sleep. How is this possible,
Going Down Pit
the mine entrance I hear you cry. COCA! They would be given an inexhaustable supply of coca leaves to chew, which gives energy and also suppresses the appetite. The mines are still in operation today, manned by volunteers, although we heard the working conditions were still appalling. So we were going to find out.
First we stopped at a mining shop, to buy supplies and gifts for the miners. The mines we were visiting were not owned by the Bolivian Government. They were termed "co-operative mines", and the miners have no fixed wage or income. They get paid according to how much silver they collectively extract, which varies from week to week. Because they effectively work for themselves, it means they have to buy all their equipment themselves. So it has become tradition for tourists to donate much needed supplies during the tour. Which included DYNAMITE! Yes that´s right, we went shopping for dynamite. It seems downright crazy to me, but they use the dynamite to clear tunnels and extract the silver ore. Using high explosives in a tunnel 200m underground does not seem wise. But what do I know, I usually work in an office 200m ABOVE ground, where the use
Mine Cart
two miners pushing and two miners pulling. Takes a lot of effort to shift a ton of ore of explosives is generally frowned upon. But our guide assured us that they "know what they are doing". I should bloody hope so! I would hate to see dynamite in the hands of someone who DIDN'T know what they were doing (which ironically turned out to be me a few hours later, assembling a dynamite bomb). Even with their knowledge of explosives, cave-ins are the most common form of death in the mines.
So, back to the shop. We were buying dynamite for the miners, but also a couple for ourselves to detonate later. There were several brands of dynamite to choose from, including Peruvian and Argentinian. Apparently the Peruvian dynamite is the equivalent of Tesco´s "No Frills" line. Cheap and cheerful, but ultimately lacking in substance and quality.Or perhaps it could be compared to Sainsbury´s "Be Good To Yourself" range ("the healthier alternative. Reduce your cave-in levels with our reduced nitrate explosives"). This simply would not do. If we were going to blow things up, we were going to do it properly. So we bought Bolivian dynamite which apparently is the best value. I guess you could say it gives you more bang for your buck!
First,
a tight squeeze
an access tunnel to reach the next level down a few dynamite basics.
1. Yes, it comes in sticks
2. No, they aren´t red with a fuse in the end. That is only in cartoons.
3. It is inert. You can throw it to the ground and it won´t explode
4. Fuses are bought separately, and are cut into "two-minute" lengths. They also have an explosive charge at the end to ensure the dynamite goes off
5. The dynamite sticks are actually like massive sticks of chewing gum in wrappers. It is soft, green and can be molded into any shape
6. It can be combined with fertiliser (ammonium nitrate) for a more powerful explosion
So we bought dynamite sticks, detonation cord and small bags of ammonium nitrate, along with soft drinks and coca leaves for the miners. Dressed in protective overalls, wellies, hard hat and head torches, we looked like right pillocks. But we were ready to go! As we headed into the mine and left daylight behind, I started to feel pangs of claustrophobia. I don´t normally suffer from this, but I could almost feel the weight of hundreds of tons of earth pressing down overhead. And the mineshaft was being supported by wooden posts!
mine cart approaching!
getting out of the way down a side tunnel Surely steel would be better?! Running alonside us were hissing pipes which fed compressed air down to the pneumatic drills. As we moved deeper into the mine, the tunnels became narrower and lower, and the quality of the air changed. It was dusty and choking, and also had an acrid chemical element to it. The air contains a mix of nitrates, sulphates and other noxious gases, as well as tiny particles of silica. This is the air that the miners breath every day, and it causes silicosis of the lungs, another major cause of death. Many of the miners have health insurance, and once they have lost 50% of their lung capacity to silicosis, they can retire with benefits. Luckily our exposure to these gases was only brief, and we also had face-scarves to protect ourselves.
Periodically we would have move out of the way when mine carts came rumbling past. Good old fashioned iron mining carts, being pushed along on rails. This was a proper working mine! This tour would not have been allowed in England. We´d have been shown round a closed but structurally safe mine, with lifelike models of miners scattered around. As we went deeper
tools of the trade
the basic ingredients for a dynamite bomb. Small bag of ammonium nitrate, a ball of dynamite and a detonation cord into the mine and saw various branches, rails and closed-off tunnels, I was reminded of the second Indiana Jones film (remember the mine cart sceen?) Next we clambered down some narrow access passages, very steep and dusty, and reached level three. It was extremely hot down here and I was sweating, despite not actually doing any work. A few more levels down, the temperature can reach 45 degrees apparently. The miners believe that since it is so hot, they must be close to the furnaces of hell, and that the mines are owned by the devil (or "Uncle Tio" as he if often known). So at various points in the mine there are shrines to the devil, covered with cigarettes, coca leaves and alcohol. They do not worship him, they just seek to appease him with their offerings.
Normally you are not allowed near dynamite blastings on the tour, but we gave one miner some dynamite and then followed him. He was using a hammer and an iron spike to make a deep, narrow hole in the wall. This would then be packed and shaped with the soft dynamite, and detonated. But our tour moved on before the actual
all in a days work
muddy, and relieved to be back on the surface blast.
This was all very hard, physical work for the miners. Tons and tons of ore is blasted, shovelled and moved to the surface every day. It is hot, strenuous, dangerous and damaging to the health. When we climbed out of the mine several hours later, I was glad to be out. Fresh air and sunlight! The poor miners, those working conditions were almost inhuman.
Now it was playtime! I was allowed to make a dynamite bomb. I unwrapped the dynamite and shaped it into a ball like it was plastercine. I stuck the detonation cord into the ball, and re-wrapped it in the paper. I then put the ball into a black plastic bag, and tipped in the fertiliser. the bag was then tied, and we were ready to rumble! Someone lit the fuse, and then a guy took it off me and legged it. Once it was deposited a safe distance away, we waited. BANG! It made me jump out of my skin, and created a large plume of dust. BANG BANG! Two more went off. Brilliant! Where can I buy this stuff in the UK? Ebay?
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Hank
non-member comment
Thanks
I have read your entire journal and enjoyed your adventure. Hope you are safe. Thanks.