Wednesday, May 4, 2016

[Geology2] Indonesian sulfur miners brave volcano, fumes, earn pennies



Indonesian sulfur miners brave volcano, fumes, earn pennies

By Associated Press

Published: 4 May 2016

KAWAH IJEN, Indonesia (AP) — Stunning Mount Ijen in eastern Java draws tourists by day and hundreds of sulfur miners by night. They endure toxic fumes and backbreaking loads to earn pennies hauling out a substance used to bleach sugar and vulcanize rubber.

Just after midnight, wearing headlamps to find their way through the darkness and volcanic smoke, the miners descend into the crater with shovels and crowbars, often without protective masks.

They break up the mustard-yellow slabs of sulfur that are formed by planting pipes into the crater, forcing sulfuric gases to condense and then solidify.

In this April 16, 2016 photo, a miner tries to balance his steps as he carries sulfur slabs on his shoulders up from the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, ...

In this April 16, 2016 photo, a miner tries to balance his steps as he carries sulfur slabs on his shoulders up from the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia. Stunning Mount Ijen in east Java draws tourists by day and hundreds of sulfur miners by night. More than 9,000 feet above sea level, the men descend into the volcano's crater to dig out slabs of bright yellow sulfur, enduring toxic fumes and back-breaking loads to earn $10 a day delivering a substance used to bleach sugar and vulcanize rubber. (AP Photo/Binsar Bakkara)

Bearing loads of up 70 kilograms (154 pounds), the men make an agonizing climb out of the crater and then a 3-kilometer (2-mile) journey down the mountain.

They face deformities and shortened life spans working in a job that in other countries is mechanized because of the high dangers. Lethal gas explosions are an ever-present risk.

"This is very hard work," said 42-year-old miner Suratna, who like many Indonesians uses only one name. "I barely make enough money to buy food for my family and for my children's education, but I still thank God for giving me something".

The miners earn 1,000 rupiah (7 cents) for each kilogram, or about $10 a day if they make two trips up and down the smoldering 2,799-meter (9,183-foot) volcano.

In this April 16, 2016 photo, a sulfur miner carries baskets full of sulfur slabs through volcanic smoke as he climbs up from the crater of Mount Ijen in Ban...

In this April 16, 2016 photo, a sulfur miner carries baskets full of sulfur slabs through volcanic smoke as he climbs up from the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia. Stunning Mount Ijen in east Java draws tourists by day and hundreds of sulfur miners by night. More than 9,000 feet above sea level, the men descend into the volcano's crater to dig out slabs of bright yellow sulfur, enduring toxic fumes and back-breaking loads to earn $10 a day delivering a substance used to bleach sugar and vulcanize rubber. (AP Photo/Binsar Bakkara)

In this April 16, 2016 photo, a sulfur miner pauses as he works at the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia. Stunning Mount Ijen in east ...

In this April 16, 2016 photo, a sulfur miner pauses as he works at the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia. Stunning Mount Ijen in east Java draws tourists by day and hundreds of sulfur miners by night. More than 9,000 feet above sea level, the men descend into the volcano's crater to dig out slabs of bright yellow sulfur, enduring toxic fumes and back-breaking loads to earn $10 a day delivering a substance used to bleach sugar and vulcanize rubber. (AP Photo/Binsar Bakkara)

In this April 16, 2016 photo, volcanic smoke blankets a miner as he collects sulfur rocks he just dug up at the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java...

In this April 16, 2016 photo, volcanic smoke blankets a miner as he collects sulfur rocks he just dug up at the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia. Stunning Mount Ijen in east Java draws tourists by day and hundreds of sulfur miners by night. More than 9,000 feet above sea level, the men descend into the volcano's crater to dig out slabs of bright yellow sulfur, enduring toxic fumes and back-breaking loads to earn $10 a day delivering a substance used to bleach sugar and vulcanize rubber. (AP Photo/Binsar Bakkara)

In this April 16, 2016 photo, miners dig out sulfur rocks at the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia. Stunning Mount Ijen draws tourists...

In this April 16, 2016 photo, miners dig out sulfur rocks at the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia. Stunning Mount Ijen draws tourists by day and hundreds of sulfur miners by night. They endure toxic fumes and back-breaking loads to earn pennies delivering a substance used to bleach sugar and vulcanize rubber. The miners earn about $10 a day if they make two trips up and down the smoldering 2,799 meter (9,183 foot) volcano. (AP Photo/Binsar Bakkara)

In this April 16, 2016 photo, a miner digs out sulfur slabs at the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia. The workers started to work just...

In this April 16, 2016 photo, a miner digs out sulfur slabs at the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia. The workers started to work just after midnight in order to finish early in the morning to avoid having to work under the hot tropical sun. They endure toxic fumes and back-breaking loads to earn pennies delivering a substance used to bleach sugar and vulcanize rubber. (AP Photo/Binsar Bakkara)

In this April 16, 2016 photo, Marzuki, a sulfur miner, carries baskets of sulfur as he climbs up from the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java, Indo...

In this April 16, 2016 photo, Marzuki, a sulfur miner, carries baskets of sulfur as he climbs up from the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia. Stunning Mount Ijen in east Java draws tourists by day and hundreds of sulfur miners by night. More than 9,000 feet above sea level, the men descend into the volcano's crater to dig out slabs of bright yellow sulfur, enduring toxic fumes and back-breaking loads to earn $10 a day delivering a substance used to bleach sugar and vulcanize rubber. (AP Photo/Binsar Bakkara)

In this April 16, 2016 photo, a miner pulls a cart fully loaded with sulfur slabs to a collecting point a few kilometers away at Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, Ea...

In this April 16, 2016 photo, a miner pulls a cart fully loaded with sulfur slabs to a collecting point a few kilometers away at Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia. The miners earn 1,000 rupiah (7 cents) for each kilogram, or about $10 a day if they make two trips up and down the smoldering 2,799 meter (9,183 foot) volcano. (AP Photo/Binsar Bakkara)

In this April 16, 2016 photo, a sulfur carries baskets full of sulfur slabs through volcanic smoke as he climbs up from the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwang...

In this April 16, 2016 photo, a sulfur carries baskets full of sulfur slabs through volcanic smoke as he climbs up from the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia. The baskets could weigh up to 70 kilograms (154 lbs) which miners have to carry a few kilometers up and on a rocky terrain to a collecting point at the foot of the volcano. The miners earn 1,000 rupiah (7 cents) for each kilogram, or about $10 a day if they make two trips up and down the smoldering 2,799 meter (9,183 foot) volcano. (AP Photo/Binsar Bakkara)

In this April 16, 2016 photo, a sulfur miner is dwarfed by giant volcanic rocks as he carries baskets full of sulfur slabs on his shoulders up from the crate...

In this April 16, 2016 photo, a sulfur miner is dwarfed by giant volcanic rocks as he carries baskets full of sulfur slabs on his shoulders up from the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia. The baskets could weigh up to 70 kilograms (154 lbs) which miners have to carry a few kilometers up and on a rocky terrain to a collecting point at the foot of the volcano. The miners earn 1,000 rupiah (7 cents) for each kilogram, or about $10 a day if they make two trips up and down the smoldering 2,799 meter (9,183 foot) volcano. (AP Photo/Binsar Bakkara)

In this April 16, 2016 photo, a sulfur miner, with only a piece of wet cloth he put in his mouth to protect his respiration, digs out sulfur slabs at the cra...

In this April 16, 2016 photo, a sulfur miner, with only a piece of wet cloth he put in his mouth to protect his respiration, digs out sulfur slabs at the crater of Mount Ijen in Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia. Hundreds of men descend into the volcano's crater every night to dig out slabs of bright yellow sulfur, enduring toxic fumes and back-breaking loads to earn $10 a day delivering a substance used to bleach sugar and vulcanize rubber. (AP Photo/Binsar Bakkara)


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