- The tragic incident happened last weekend at Kakaki village in the Paikoro local government area of the State.
Another mine collapse in Nigeria’s middle belt State of Niger has claimed two lives.
The tragic incident happened last weekend at Kakaki village in the Paikoro local government area of the State.
The persons killed in the collapse are two brothers identified as Zubairu Ibrahim and Sadiq Ibrahim.
This is the fourth of such incidents in as many months with the three previous mine collapses happening in the Shiroro and Paikoro areas of the state.
The deceased brothers, aged 20 and 25, were said to have left home without telling their parents that they were heading to the mine to prospect for gold.
The father of the deceased brothers, Mallam Zubairu Ibrahim, said the family initially thought the young men were out with friends but when they did not return, the family learned that the brothers had gone to the mine site, hoping to find gold or other precious stones.
He said he sent community members to search for his sons and their bodies were found buried beneath the rubbles of the collapsed mine at the riverbank.
While speaking with officials from the state Ministry of Mineral Resources who paid a condolence and fact-finding visit to the village, Ibrahim said life was no longer worth living after burying two sons in one day.
The team from the Ministry of Mineral Resources was led by the Permanent Secretary, Alhaji Yunusa Mohammed Nahauni and directors, the Miners Association State Chapter Caretaker Chairman, as well as the Nigeria Union of Mines Workers.
The Permanent Secretary lamented that the death was avoidable if the community had abided with the Governor’s order suspending mining in the state.
He stressed that the directive suspending mining in the state is still in force as the ministry will continue to crack down on illegal mining operations, warning that anyone found violating the regulations would face legal consequences.
Nahauni, who expressed the government’s condolences, reiterated the need to determine the cause of the accident, urging the community to inform the ministry whenever they discover any mineral elements in their vicinity to receive proper guidance
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