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Ijen Volcano, Indonesia (Indonesia)
Photography by
Ronald De Hommel
Image reference: 500RDH_011.jpg
2009-03-10 Ijen Volcano, Indonesia.
Workers are doing maintenance on the steel pipes that channel the liquid sulphur down. The steel pipes are more than one cm thick, but have to be replaced every two to three years. If leaks aren’t repaired right away the sulphur will harden in the pipes and render the whole channel useless.
The crater of the Ijen volcano in East Java produces large quantities of sulphur. More than 300 workers ascend the mountain every day to collect the thick yellow chunks of sulphur. They carry baskets weighing 70-90 kilo's 300m up to the crater rim and then down to a small processing plant on the slopes of the mountain. They earn approximately 6 Euros a day with the heavy labour. They're happy with their work though, because they earn a lot more than they could in any other job in the region. Contrary to the expectations the contact with the sulphur fumes has no negative effect on the health of the workers. Breathing the fumes while collecting the sulphur is like breathing tear gas. But it doesn’t seem to affect the lungs, doctors in the region confirm.
Working in hell, not that bad at all.
Le cratère du volcan d'Ijen dans Java-Orientale produit de grandes quantite�s de soufre. Plus de 300 ouvriers montent la montagne chaque jour pour rassembler les gros morceaux jaunes e�pais du soufre. Ils portent des paniers pesant de 70-90 kilos plus que 300m a haut, jusqu'au sommet de cratère et puis vers le bas à une petite fabrique sur les pentes de la montagne. Ils gagnent approximativement 6 euros par jour avec le travail lourd. Ils gagnent plus qu'ils pourraient dans n'importe quel autre travail dans la re�gion. Inhalation des vapeurs est une experience comme inhaler le gaz lacrymogène. Mais il ne semble pas affecter les poumons, me�decins dans la re�gion confirment.
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