The collapse of a gold mine has killed 42 people and injured several others in Mali
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Digital Subscription
One year of digital access for only $205*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 16/02/2025 (587 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — A gold mine collapsed in eastern Mali, killing dozens of people and injuring many more, according to Malian television and officials in the Kéniéba district where the accident occurred. It is the second major accident this year in the French-speaking West African country, which is one of Africa’s top three gold producers.
Late on Saturday, Malian television announced the collapse of the site at Bilali Koto in the commune of Dabia, with a provisional death toll of 42 and many injured.
The prefect of Kéniéba, who represents the government in the locality, confirmed the incident. “The death toll of 42 should be definitive,” Mohamed Dicko told The Associated Press on Sunday.
“The accident happened yesterday, Saturday. It was a landslide at a site run by Chinese nationals,” said community leader Falaye Sissoko. Dicko said authorities were still trying to establish whether the mine was operating legally.
This is the second time in less than a month that such an accident has occurred in Mali. On Jan. 29, a landslide killed several gold miners, mostly women, in the Koulikoro region in the south of the country.
In January last year, an unregulated gold mine collapsed near the capital, Bamako, killing more than 70 people.
In recent years, there have been concerns that profits from unregulated mining in northern Mali could benefit extremists active in that part of the country.
“Gold is by far Mali’s most important export, comprising more than 80% of total exports in 2021,” according to the International Trade Administration of the U.S. Department of Commerce. It says more than 2 million people, or more than 10% of Mali’s population, depend on the mining sector for income.
Artisanal gold mining is estimated to produce around 30 tons of gold a year and represents 6% of Mali’s annual gold production.