More Than 100 Reportedly Killed in Gold Mine Collapse in Central African Republic

More than 100 people were reportedly killed after an artisanal gold mine collapsed in western Central African Republic, with rescue workers continuing to recover bodies from the site. The disaster occurred Tuesday, August 18, in the village of Zamboye in the Nana-Mambéré prefecture, approximately 50 kilometers from the town of Baboua and near the border with Cameroon.

Photo from video posted to NBC News Facebook

The collapse occurred at a low-tech, artisanal mining operation where workers extract gold using relatively basic equipment and infrastructure. According to the prosecutor at the Baboua sub-prefecture court, the collapse was believed to have been caused by several underground tunnels giving way while miners were working.

The initial reports of the disaster indicated that dozens of miners had been buried. Local officials and Red Cross volunteers subsequently reported that more than 100 bodies had been recovered, while additional miners remained trapped or missing beneath the rubble.

The official death toll has been disputed. Central African Republic Mines Minister Rufin Benam Beltoungou reported that 49 people had been confirmed dead, including 34 Central Africans, 13 Cameroonians and two Chadians, while local officials, witnesses and Red Cross workers reported that more than 100 people had died.

The discrepancy is partly the result of the continuing recovery operation and the difficulty of determining how many miners were underground when the collapse occurred. Red Cross volunteer Gervais Ganagoro said rescuers continued finding bodies, with more than 10 recovered during one morning of the operation, while the number of people still buried could not be established.

Several survivors were reportedly critically injured in the collapse. Authorities have not established a definitive number of injured or missing people, and officials have warned that the final death toll could rise as rescuers continue searching the site.

The scale of the recovery operation has also presented significant challenges. Local workers said rescue crews lacked the equipment and specialized expertise necessary to respond effectively to a disaster of this size, while miners and other workers at the site participated in efforts to recover people buried beneath the earth.

The Central African government has suspended mining operations at the Zamboye site while authorities investigate the disaster. The investigation is intended to determine why the tunnels collapsed, identify the victims and determine who was responsible for operating the mining site.

Artisanal gold mining is widespread throughout the Central African Republic and provides income for thousands of people, particularly in areas where formal employment opportunities are limited. The operations can also lack the structural safeguards, protective equipment and regulatory oversight found at larger industrial mining operations, contributing to the risk of deadly collapses.

The Zamboye disaster is not the first deadly mining accident to strike the country this year. Another collapse at an artisanal mining site in the region in June killed several people, while separate mining accidents earlier in the year also resulted in multiple deaths.

The victims included miners from multiple countries because the Zamboye site is located near the Cameroonian border. Cameroonian authorities confirmed that several of their citizens were among those killed, while the Central African government also identified two Chadian victims in its official tally.

For families waiting for information about missing relatives, the uncertainty surrounding the death toll has made an already devastating situation even more difficult. Rescue operations remain focused on recovering those still buried and determining the full number of people who died in the collapse.

The final toll from the Zamboye mine collapse remains unknown. Local officials and Red Cross workers have reported more than 100 deaths, while the Central African government has officially confirmed 49 deaths, with additional people injured, missing or potentially still trapped beneath the collapsed mine. A video of the collapse was posted to Facebook by NBC News.