Dozens Killed in Landslide at Mine in Central African Republic

SadaNews - Dozens were killed in a landslide in the Central African Republic near the border with Cameroon last week, according to reports from the French news agency citing an official and a resident.

The Central African Republic has mineral resources such as uranium, lithium, diamonds, timber, and gold, which are exploited by companies from the United States, China, Russia, Rwanda, Canada, and France.

However, landslides are common in illegal mining operations that are outside the control of the state.

The recent incident occurred on the morning of May 6 in the Bémbaré site in the Nana-Mambéré province in the west of the country, according to a local resident from the neighboring village of Sagani and an official from the municipality of Aba.

They added that many bodies are still buried and the search for the missing continues. Mining activities in the area remain halted.

No immediate official statement has been issued by the authorities.

Bémbaré is located in a remote area that is difficult to access, where many armed groups opposing the government are active.

In mid-March, a landslide killed seven people at a mine in the village of Ngorom, also located in western Central African Republic.

Twenty people were killed in February in Gordy in the northeast of the country.