From using drones for field inspections to stockpiling cyanide, miners are scrambling to maintain output amid the coronavirus pandemic, a task made trickier in underground mines where social distancing is nearly impossible.
The virus has claimed 8 700 lives and infected over 200 000 globally. While miners have faced some outages, due to government shutdowns in places like Peru and Mongolia, most production continues.
In a defensive step, miners have begun stockpiling fuel, hydrofluoric acid, lime and other industry staples, including cyanide, which is used to extract gold from rock.