The collapse of the open-pit gold mine that killed at least 16 people has underscored the dangers of working in a poorly regulated industry. It has also shown the crucial role that mining plays in the survival of thousands of people, who take a gamble and create quasi-cities, complete with bingo and raffles, around mines in hopes of earning what other parts of the trouble country cannot give them. Venezuela’s government does not have an accurate count of people who were living at the site of the mine, but several miners who have worked at the mine estimate that at least 3,000 people were in Bulla Loca at any given time since December.
