At least 28 people were killed when a landslide struck an illegal gold mining site in Angola’s northwestern Bengo province, local authorities said, in one of the country’s deadliest illegal mining accidents.
Four people were rescued from the site, the province’s civil protection and fire service added in a statement on Sunday, adding that search operations had been completed.
The deceased from Saturday’s accident were aged between 16 and 35 years old, authorities said.
Illegal mining in Angola had historically been associated with the diamond industry. But the country’s mining diversification drive has fuelled a boom in artisanal mining of other metals such as gold.
Angola, a major diamond producer, is diversifying into metals such as copper and gold as diamond prices fall and synthetic diamonds rise.
A gas explosion killed at least 90 people at a Chinese coal mine on Friday in the country’s deadliest mining accident in 16 years.
The mine, established in 2010, is located in China’s coal-mining heartland of Shanxi.
The local emergency management authority said it was investigating the cause of the accident.
According to Chinese state media, President Xi Jinping ordered a thorough investigation into the cause of the accident and strict accountability in accordance with the law, calling for authorities to “spare no effort” in treating the injured and conducting search-and-rescue operations.
