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Tuesday May 21, 2024

22 miners killed in Tanzania landslide

Accident occurred in Simuyu region's Bariadi district, more than 500-kms north of capital, Dodoma, burying miners under heavy debris

By AFP
January 15, 2024
This picture shows members of rescue teams searching for corpses at the area of a landslide in the road between Quibdo and Medellin, Choco department, Colombia on January 13, 2024. — AFP
This picture shows members of rescue teams searching for corpses at the area of a landslide in the road between Quibdo and Medellin, Choco department, Colombia on January 13, 2024. — AFP

DAR ES SALAAM: At least 22 people have lost their lives following a landslide at a mine in northern Tanzania, officials said on Sunday.

The accident occurred in Simuyu region's Bariadi district, more than 500-kms north of the capital, Dodoma, burying the miners under heavy debris.

“As we close the rescue operations, the death toll remains 22, all men,” Faustine Mtitu, acting commander for the region's fire and rescue force, told reporters on Sunday.

“We are convinced that there are no more bodies trapped in the rubble,” he said, adding that safety procedures had not been followed at the mine.

President Samia Suluhu Hassan expressed her “great sadness” over the accident, paying tribute to the victims on Sunday.