Seven out of nine persons, who were allegedly working in an illegal mining pit at Bonsawire, a community in the Tarkwa-Nsuaem Municipality have been trapped to death.
The other two sustained various degrees of injury and are currently on admission at the Tarkwa Municipal hospital receiving treatment.
The deceased included; four women and three men, and the bodies have been deposited at the same hospital’s morgue for preservation and autopsy.
Mr. Francis Amoah, National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) Coordinator, who confirmed this to the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said the incident happened on Saturday, September 23, 2023.
According to him, the women were apparently carrying the sand containing gold popularly known as (load) out of the open pit when it caved in.
He said their colleagues around quickly organized themselves and went for an excavator machine to help save the victims trapped in the pit.
Mr. Amoah said after the team had worked for hours, all the nine persons were rescued, with six dead and three injured, but while transporting them to hospital one passed on.
The NADMO Coordinator emphasized that investigation had commenced as it was unclear what caused the pit to collapse.