JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — At least 11 people have been killed after a landslide triggered by torrential rains swept through an unauthorized gold mining site on Indonesia’s Sulawesi island, authorities said, with dozens more reported missing on Monday.
More than 100 villagers were digging for gold nuggets in the remote Bone Bolango district of Gorontalo province on Sunday when tonnes of mud cascaded down from the surrounding hills, burying their makeshift camp, search and rescue chief Heliyanto said.
He said 44 people escaped the landslide, six of them injured, some of whom were saved by rescuers. Eleven bodies have been recovered, but the initial death toll was revised to 12 after authorities discovered one of the dead had been listed twice. About 48 others are missing, he said.
“Rescue efforts for the dead and missing were hampered by heavy rains and blocked roads covered with thick mud and debris,” said rescue official Afifuddin Irafdeh.
Torrential rains that have been lashing the region since Saturday caused levees to burst, causing flooding of up to three meters (10 feet) in five villages in Bone Bolango, said Abdul Muhari, a spokesman for the National Disaster Management Agency. Around 300 homes were damaged and more than 1,000 people fled for safety.
Informal mining operations are common in Indonesia, providing precarious livelihoods for thousands of people working in conditions that put them at high risk of serious injury or death.
Landslides, floods and tunnel collapses are just some of the dangers miners face. Much of the processing of gold ore involves highly toxic mercury and cyanide, and workers often use little or no protective gear.
The last in Japan Major mining accidents In April 2022, a landslide occurred at an illegal traditional gold mine in Mandarin Natal regency, North Sumatra, killing 12 women who were searching for gold.
A makeshift wooden structure is erected at an illegal gold mine in North Sulawesi in February 2019. Collapsed More than 40 people were buried to death due to shifting ground and the large number of mining holes.
