President Laura Fernández was rushed out of the Crucitas mining area Friday morning after a loud blast interrupted her official visit to the Finca Vivoyet property, where she had taken lawmakers to see the damage caused by illegal gold mining.
The sound was heard at about 8:10 a.m. while Fernández was touring the site with members of her administration, governing party lawmakers and some opposition deputies. Security officers immediately activated presidential protection protocols, ordered people nearby to get down, and moved the president to a vehicle as reporters and other members of the delegation were pulled back.
Authorities had not confirmed by late morning what caused the sound. Local outlets at the scene described it as a powerful detonation or a sound similar to an explosion. Security teams began sweeping the surrounding area to determine whether it came from an explosive, gunfire or another source.
The scare turned a highly political field visit into a visible demonstration of the security crisis the government says it is trying to confront in Crucitas, a remote area of northern Costa Rica near the Nicaraguan border that has been battered by years of illegal gold extraction.
No injuries were confirmed. However, governing party lawmaker María Isabel Camareno was taken out by ambulance after suffering a nervous episode, and Repretel reported that deputy Fernando Valdivia suffered a medical episode after the blast.
The security operation had already been heavy before the incident. Units from the Border Police, Public Force, the Special Intervention Unit, presidential security and other police bodies were deployed for the visit, with aerial support also present in the area.
Fernández later told reporters the situation in Crucitas was “totally out of control” and used the incident to press lawmakers to act. The president has argued that Costa Rica cannot continue spending heavily on police operations while criminal groups and illegal miners keep removing gold from the area.
The visit was not just symbolic. Fernández had invited all 57 lawmakers to accompany her to Crucitas, saying she wanted them to walk the land and see what she described as environmental, economic and security damage in person. The trip came as her administration pushes a controversial proposal that would allow regulated gold extraction in the area as an alternative to the illegal mining now taking place.
Opponents of open-pit mining have warned that legalizing extraction would repeat the mistakes that made Crucitas one of Costa Rica’s most bitter environmental fights. Supporters of the government’s approach argue that the current model is worse because the gold is already being taken, the environment is still being damaged, and the state has little practical control over the territory.
Crucitas has been under pressure for years. The original open-pit gold project by the Canadian-linked company Infinito Gold was halted after court battles, leaving the area as a magnet for illegal miners. In recent years, authorities and local media have documented tunnels, makeshift processing sites, pollution risks and the movement of extracted material out of the area.
The Constitutional Court has also raised the pressure on the state. In a March ruling, the court ordered permanent police presence, stronger border controls and a coordinated plan to address illegal mining, water contamination, health risks and environmental recovery in Crucitas. That ruling gave the government a three-month deadline to submit a detailed action plan and 12 months to execute the measures.
Today’s episode also recalled a visit made in 2022 by former President Rodrigo Chaves, who traveled to Crucitas early in his term after promising to see the damage firsthand and look for a solution. Four years later, Fernández is trying to turn the same issue into one of the first major tests of her presidency.
What changed Friday was the imagery. Instead of a controlled tour meant to persuade lawmakers, our country saw its president surrounded by security officers and rushed out of a devastated mining zone after a blast no one had yet explained. For Fernández, that may strengthen the case that Crucitas can no longer wait. For her critics, it will also sharpen the question at the center of the debate: whether Costa Rica can restore order without reopening the door to large-scale gold mining.
