The Upper East regional minister says nine miners have so far been retrieved while a search is still underway for three others
Nine dead bodies have been retrieved in a pit at the Gbane mining area in the Talensi District of the Upper East Region.
The bodies were retrieved following a rescue operation carried out by the various security services and the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO).
The police said the pit collapsed on Monday (31 May 2021) at the Moabok mining site following a downpour.
According to Stephen Yakubu, Upper East regional minister a committee is being set up to investigate circumstances leading to the collapse of the mine.
Speaking to Nana Yaa Mensah on The Asaase Breakfast Show on Thursday after visiting the mine, Yakubu said the rescue operation is still ongoing, adding they suspect three more bodies could be trapped in the rubble.
“When I visited the pit yesterday, I realised that the miners are local guys and because they are very deep down, anything that is happening, they don’t know.
“So, what I am going to do is to set up a committee to investigate and to prevent this from happening again. The update that I have, nine bodies have been retrieved they are suspecting that a further three will be retrieved,” Yakubu said.
He said the location of the mine pit also contributed to the disaster.
“If it wasn’t situated in water way the water wouldn’t have entered the pit, So I am hoping that the committee that I will set up will give us recommendations so that this doesn’t happen again,” Yakubu said.
He said the site is a registered mine site for small scale mining at Gbane in the Talensi District.
