At Least 48 Dead in Mali Mine Accident

Local police have confirmed that the accident was caused by a landslide and that most of the victims were young women, including one carrying a child on her back.

Mali is one of Africa’s leading gold producers but like many West African countries, authorities have a difficult time controlling the activities of illegal miners.

The head of a local environmental agency was quoted as saying that ‘there are many difficulties in prospecting for minerals in an area like this,’.

The accident occurred in an area that had been abandoned, and was previously operated by a Chinese company.

Mine accidents are not uncommon in Mali; a year ago, a similar incident occurred in the same area, resulting in the deaths of about 70 people.

And last month, about 10 people were killed and others injured, most of them women, in a mine accident.