More than 30 people are trapped under the rubble of a quarry in Zambia after part of a waste heap collapsed, a government source said Friday.
Zambia’s Minister of Home Affairs and Internal Security Jack Mwiimbu said in Parliament this Friday that the collapse occurred in the town of Chingola, about 400 kilometers north of the capital Lusaka.
“We have an ongoing tragedy in Chingola, where several of our citizens were injured in a quarry collapse,” Mwiimbu said as quoted by the Associated Press (AP) news agency.
“We have more than 30 people trapped under the rubble and we are fighting to recover them,” the minister added, adding that rescue teams were already in the area.
According to Minister of Mines and Mineral Development Paul Kabuswe, who was at the scene of the accident, it is not yet possible to determine the exact number of those arrested and ensure that they are only miners.
Cigola is home to one of the largest quarries in the world, over 10 kilometers long. The area is marked by huge deposits of waste consisting of rock and earth excavated from the mines.