Sudan: Gold mine collapse kills dozens

Khartoum, Dec 29: At least 31 people were killed and eight reported missing when a rudimentary private gold mine collapsed on top of them in western Sudan, officials said.

The Darsaya mine near al-Nahud, a town about 500 kilometers (310 miles) west of Khartoum, was reopened after the government shut it down amid safety concerns.

What do we know so far?

Local media first reported that shafts in the Darsaya mine had given way, leading to 31 deaths and injuries.

"Thirty-one traditional miners were killed because of a mine collapsing," said Khaled Dahwa, the head of the Sudanese Mineral Resources Company in the West Kordofan region where Nahud is located.

The AP news agency reported, citing local officials, that at least 38 people died and eight were injured in the collapse.

The state-run mining company posted images on Facebook showing hundreds of villages lined at the site as heavy diggers tried to find more survivors and bodies. People were pictured preparing tombs for the victims in other social media images.

Another mining official said four miners were killed at the same mine in January. "Authorities at the time shut down the mine and installed security but a couple of months ago they left," Dahwa said.

Why is mining unsafe in Sudan?

Gold mining flourished across Sudan about a decade ago amid rising inflation in one of the world's poorest countries.

About two million traditional miners are involved in the search for gold across the country.

They often work in semi-legal mines across Sudan with ramshackle infrastructure in unsafe conditions.

Despite these precarious conditions, they unearth about 80% of the tons of gold Sudan produces each year, according to official figures.

In 2020, the East African nation produced 36.6 tons, the second most in the continent, official data showed.

In the past two years, Sudan's transitional government has begun regulating the industry amid allegations of gold smuggling.

But the country has been mired in a political crisis since a military coup on October 25.

Mine collapses are common in African countries like nearby Congo.

Source: DW