Indonesia: 15 killed after illegal gold mine collapses following landslide on Sumatra Island

There were 25 people at the mine digging for gold when the landslide struck, killing 15 and injuring three people, according to an official. Mineral resources in Indonesia are located in remote areas in conditions difficult for authorities to regulate.

Jakarta: In a tragic development, at least 15 people were killed as a gold mine collapsed in Indonesia's province of Sumatra following a landslide caused by heavy rains, according to officials. At least seven people still remain missing as of Friday as rescue officials are scrambling to locate them.

The illegal gold mine in the district of Solok collapsed after a landslide on Thursday evening due to heavy rain, said Irwan Efendi, the head of the provincial disaster agency. Rescuers must trek eight hours to get to the site, which is inaccessible by road, Irwan told Reuters. "The victims are the residents who manually mine for gold," he said.

He estimated there were probably 25 people in the mine at the time of the incident, of whom 15 died, while three were injured and seven are missing. Police and military launched a search early on Friday for the missing, along with steps to evacuate the dead.

Small-scale and illegal mining has often caused accidents in Indonesia, where mineral resources are located in remote areas in conditions difficult for authorities to regulate. The villagers were digging for grains of gold when the landslide struck on the Sumatra Island on Thursday, burying them. 

In July, a landslide triggered by torrential rains crashed onto an unauthorized gold mining operation on Indonesia’s Sulawesi island, killing at least 23 people. Over 100 people were digging for gold in a pit at the small traditional gold mine in remote Bone Bolango in Gorontalo province when tons of mud plunged down the surrounding hills and buried them.

Landslides, flooding and collapses of tunnels are just some of the hazards facing miners. Much of gold ore processing involves highly toxic mercury and cyanide and workers frequently use little or no protection. The country’s last major mining-related accident occurred in April 2022 when a landslide crashed onto an illegal traditional gold mine in North Sumatra’s Mandailing Natal district, killing 12 women who were looking for gold.

In February 2019, a makeshift wooden structure in an illegal gold mine in North Sulawesi province collapsed due to shifting soil and the large number of mining holes. More than 40 people were buried and died. The search and rescue operation became difficult not only because of the remote and inaccessible location but also because of the risk of triggering new collapses inside the mine.

(with inputs from agencies)

ALSO READ | New Zealand pilot, held hostage by separatist rebels in Indonesia's Papua region for over a year, walks free