Over 100 labourers killed in gold mine collapse in Central African Republic

An artisanal gold mine collapse in the Central African Republic (CAR) on Tuesday has now led to the death of more than 100 labourers.

The toll rose from about 30 labourers to 107 as rescue officials recovered more bodies trapped under the mine in the past hours.

Al Jazeera, quoting Red Cross volunteers and local media, reported that the landslide occurred in Zamboye, a village in Baboua, west of the country and a few kilometres from eastern Cameroon.

Authorities expect the toll to rise further as several people are still missing or trapped beneath the rubble.

“Finding them alive would be a miracle. We are saddened and heartbroken to see young men and women perish after coming to the mines to save their families from despair,” Bertrand Be Yang, a city official, was quoted as saying.

It remains unclear what exactly caused the landslide. However, the incident has been attributed to the collapse of several underground tunnels they were operating.

One of the miners, Cedric Mbango, told the AFP news agency that “the ground completely collapsed and buried people.

“As I speak to you, other people are still buried.”

Local media in the CAR also reported that the authorities have opened an investigation into what may have caused the landslide.

The governor of Cameroon’s East Region, Grégoire Mvongo, reportedly told state media that at least three of the victims are Cameroonian.

He said bodies of dead victims were being repatriated home for burial, and those who sustained injuries in Zamboï are receiving medical care.

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The CAR government spokesman, Evariste Ngamana, expressed sympathy for the families of the victims.

He also said authorities are “working hard to provide relief and assistance” to those affected.

Mine collapses are not rare in the republic. In June, a collapse killed dozens of people at a site on the Cameroon border known as the Be-Mbari gold mining site.

A landslide killed seven people at a mine in the village of Ngourroum, west of CAR, in mid-March.