At least 100 killed after illegal gold mine collapses in Central African Republic
A landslide at an illegal gold mine in the Central African Republic has resulted in at least 100 deaths. Rescue operations are ongoing as authorities investigate the collapse of underground tunnels at the unregulated site.
Why it matters
This tragedy underscores the extreme dangers of unregulated artisanal mining and the lack of state oversight in mineral-rich regions.
At least 100 people have been killed after a landslide struck an illegal gold mine in the Central African Republic near the border with Cameroon on Tuesday, with rescue teams continuing to search for survivors and victims at the site.The collapse occurred at the Zamboye mining site, about 50 kilometres (31 miles) from the Central African town of Baboua, where hundreds of artisanal miners were working in the large open-pit operation. Several people were also injured and taken to hospital in Baboua.Local sources put the death toll at around 100, although authorities said the final figure had not yet been established as search operations continued on Wednesday."The ground completely collapsed and buried people," Cedric Mbango, a miner at the site, told AFP, describing the incident as "catastrophic".The Baboua public prosecutor said the landslide was believed to have been triggered by "the collapse of several underground tunnels in which miners were…
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