Sudanese officials say 14 workers dead in gold mine collapse

Khartoum, March 31 (BNA): At least 14 workers were killed in the collapse of a gold mine in northern Sudan.

The Sudanese Mineral Resources Company said, in a short statement, that the fatal collapse occurred after one of the hillsides surrounding the gold mine in Al-Jabal Al-Ahmar – near the Egyptian border – collapsed on Thursday afternoon.

The Associated Press (AP) reported that about two dozen minors were injured in the collapse and taken to a nearby hospital.

According to a report published by the official Sudanese News Agency (SUNA) Thursday, a search operation has begun to find those trapped under the rubble.

The agency quoted eyewitnesses as saying that the workers were searching inside the mining wells for gold using heavy machinery that caused the collapse.

The state agency quoted a security source as saying that the miners are believed to be trapped under the mine’s groundwater.

It is not yet clear if rescue teams are still searching for survivors. A spokesman for the Sudanese Mineral Resources Company in the region did not respond to an Associated Press request for comment.

The state company said the dead were taken to the nearby town of Wadi Halfa and have been buried since.

M