At least 30 goldmine workers killed in landslide in northern Afghanistan
At least 30 Afghans were killed on Sunday when the tunnel they were digging in to mine gold in northern Afghanistan collapsed, and The victims were villagers who were mining for gold illegally, rather than in a government project, officials told reporters. "Poor villagers during winters try to compensate their earnings by pursuing illegal mining. They dig tunnels to enter the mines," Nek Mohammad Nazari, a spokesman for the provincial governor, said.
- World
- Agencies and A News
- Published Date: 12:00 | 06 January 2019
- Modified Date: 03:10 | 06 January 2019
At least 30 people were killed when a gold mine collapsed in northeastern Afghanistan on Sunday, officials said, in the latest tragedy to strike the war-torn country.
Another seven were injured in the incident in Kohistan district of Badakhshan province, district governor Mohammad Rustam Raghi told AFP.
Villagers had dug a 60-metre (200-feet) deep shaft in a river bed to search for gold. They were inside when the walls fell in.
"The people were using an excavator to dig a big hole in the river when it collapsed, trapping dozens of workers," Raghi said.
"At least 30 people have been killed and seven wounded."