At least 11 illegal miners are reported to have died, following the collapse of an open mine in an area in Mozambique’s northern Cabo Delgado province.
Mr Guilaze, the Provincial Director of Mineral Resources and Energy, says so far, 13 of the buried people were brought out, with two of them still alive. It is believed that there were 15 people in the mine before it collapsed. In a statement, the mining company blamed the authority’s inaction against the illicit trade of rubies.
In northern Mozambique, informal and illegal ruby mining is a competitive business that has attracted thousands of itinerant workers despite strenuous crackdowns by the authorities.