Wakazi wa eneo la machimbo ya dhahabu Lomera, mashariki mwa Jamhuri ya Kidemokrasia ya Kongo (DRC), wamekuwa wakitumia mikono yao na vifaa vya kawaida kuwaokoa wachimbaji waliokwama chini ya ardhi baada ya mashimo kadhaa kuporomoka alfajiri ya Julai 20, 2025. Hadi sasa, watu sita wameokolewa wakiwa hai, mmoja akiwa majeruhi mahututi, kwa mujibu wa taarifa hadi sasa hakuna miili iliyopatikana licha ya taarifa za vifo zinazopingana
Tukio hili limetokea katika jimbo la Kivu Kusini, eneo linalodhibitiwa na waasi wa M23 waliotekwa sehemu kubwa ya mashariki mwa DRC tangu mapema mwaka huu. Ripoti zinaeleza kuwa maporomoko ya ardhi yamefukia zaidi ya mashimo 15 ya wachimbaji wadogo, waliovamia eneo hilo tangu dhahabu ilipogunduliwa mwishoni mwa mwaka jana, na kulifanya kijiji cha awali kuwa na maelfu ya watu waliokuja kutafuta riziki
Juhudi za uokoaji zimekuwa ngumu kutokana na ukosefu wa vifaa maalum na uharibifu mkubwa wa ardhi, Waasi wa M23 walitembelea eneo hilo na kuamuru shughuli za uchimbaji kusitishwa sehemu mbalimbali. Wakati huo huo, serikali na waasi wa M23 walitia saini makubaliano ya kusitisha mapigano mwishoni mwa wiki, katika mazungumzo yaliyosimamiwa na Qatar
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People in a gold-mining area in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo have been using their bare hands and basic tools to free miners trapped underground
Six have been pulled out alive, with one seriously injured, since shafts collapsed in Lomera in the early hours of Sunday, local journalist Ashuza Barack told the BBC
There have been conflicting reports on the death toll. One resident said that 12 bodies had been found but Barack said no bodies had been recovered
The area, in South Kivu province, has been under the control of M23 rebels since they captured swathes of DR Congo's mineral-rich east earlier this year. The M23 rejected reports that hundreds were trapped underground
Lomera has witnessed a gold rush since the end of last year when the precious ore was discovered in the hills near what was then a quiet village, according to medical charity MSF
Thousands of people arrived hoping to make money as freelance, or artisanal, miners, turning the area into a "sprawling chaos of mineshafts and makeshift shelters", MSF said in a statement on a cholera outbreak in the area last month
Reports said a series of cascading landslides buried up to 15 of these makeshift shafts without warning
Rescue efforts have slowed as debris and large stones continue to block access
Journalist Barack told the BBC that the lack of proper equipment has hampered attempts to clear the site. Survivors told him that many miners remain stuck
"We've been digging since Sunday night but have not recovered any bodies. We are exhausted," one miner said
Officials from M23 visited the site and ordered mining activities to stop in parts of the area
Dozens of mining sites across this region of DR Congo supply the global electronics industry with vital metals and minerals. Many are not properly regulated and safety standards are not observed
The region has also been hit by conflict for decades as various rebel groups and the government have been fighting over control
The M23 made significant territorial gains earlier this year, capturing Goma, the main city in eastern DR Congo.
It signed a ceasefire deal with the government at the weekend in talks brokered by Qatar
Source: BBC
Tukio hili limetokea katika jimbo la Kivu Kusini, eneo linalodhibitiwa na waasi wa M23 waliotekwa sehemu kubwa ya mashariki mwa DRC tangu mapema mwaka huu. Ripoti zinaeleza kuwa maporomoko ya ardhi yamefukia zaidi ya mashimo 15 ya wachimbaji wadogo, waliovamia eneo hilo tangu dhahabu ilipogunduliwa mwishoni mwa mwaka jana, na kulifanya kijiji cha awali kuwa na maelfu ya watu waliokuja kutafuta riziki
Juhudi za uokoaji zimekuwa ngumu kutokana na ukosefu wa vifaa maalum na uharibifu mkubwa wa ardhi, Waasi wa M23 walitembelea eneo hilo na kuamuru shughuli za uchimbaji kusitishwa sehemu mbalimbali. Wakati huo huo, serikali na waasi wa M23 walitia saini makubaliano ya kusitisha mapigano mwishoni mwa wiki, katika mazungumzo yaliyosimamiwa na Qatar
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People in a gold-mining area in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo have been using their bare hands and basic tools to free miners trapped underground
Six have been pulled out alive, with one seriously injured, since shafts collapsed in Lomera in the early hours of Sunday, local journalist Ashuza Barack told the BBC
There have been conflicting reports on the death toll. One resident said that 12 bodies had been found but Barack said no bodies had been recovered
The area, in South Kivu province, has been under the control of M23 rebels since they captured swathes of DR Congo's mineral-rich east earlier this year. The M23 rejected reports that hundreds were trapped underground
Lomera has witnessed a gold rush since the end of last year when the precious ore was discovered in the hills near what was then a quiet village, according to medical charity MSF
Thousands of people arrived hoping to make money as freelance, or artisanal, miners, turning the area into a "sprawling chaos of mineshafts and makeshift shelters", MSF said in a statement on a cholera outbreak in the area last month
Reports said a series of cascading landslides buried up to 15 of these makeshift shafts without warning
Rescue efforts have slowed as debris and large stones continue to block access
Journalist Barack told the BBC that the lack of proper equipment has hampered attempts to clear the site. Survivors told him that many miners remain stuck
"We've been digging since Sunday night but have not recovered any bodies. We are exhausted," one miner said
Officials from M23 visited the site and ordered mining activities to stop in parts of the area
Dozens of mining sites across this region of DR Congo supply the global electronics industry with vital metals and minerals. Many are not properly regulated and safety standards are not observed
The region has also been hit by conflict for decades as various rebel groups and the government have been fighting over control
The M23 made significant territorial gains earlier this year, capturing Goma, the main city in eastern DR Congo.
It signed a ceasefire deal with the government at the weekend in talks brokered by Qatar
Source: BBC
