Congo shaft collapse kills over 60 miners

Kinshasa, 17 Aug – (ANA) - At least 60 miners were killed when a shaft collapsed in a remote part of north-eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where local armed groups complicated rescue efforts, officials said yesterday. The local miners were digging for gold in shafts up to 100 metres (109 yards) underground when the accident occurred on Monday in Mambasa territory in Orientale Province, said Simon Pierre Bolombo, the provincial head of mines. He said the collapse had been caused by a landslide. Congo's minister of mines, Martin Kabwelulu, told Reuters the workers were there illegally and that their shafts were deeper than the 30-metre (32-yard) limit required by the mining code for small-scale mining. Hundreds of thousands of people in eastern Congo make a living in non-industrial mines, where safety precautions are almost nonexistent and accidents are common. The area where the mine is situated is currently in the hands of a local rebel group - known as Mai Mai Morgan - which will likely hamper any rescue efforts, Bolombo said. (ANA)

FA/ANA/17 August 2012-----------