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.
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- Agencies and A News
- Published Date: 12:00 | 06 January 2019
- Modified Date: 03:10 | 06 January 2019
It was not clear why the shaft collapsed, but the provincial governor's spokesman Nik Mohammad Nazari told AFP the miners were not professionals.
"The villagers have been involved in this business for decades with no government control over them," Nazari said.
"We have sent a rescue team to the area, but villagers have already started removing bodies from the site."
Defense ministry helicopters have been dispatched to deliver cash to the families of the victims and airlift the wounded to hospitals, said Hashmat Bahaduri, spokesman for the National Disaster Management Authority.
Bahaduri confirmed the casualty toll, but warned the figures could change.
Families of the wounded will receive 10,000 afghanis (about $130) in compensation, while those of the dead will get 50,000 afghanis, he said.