Nairobi — Five people have been confirmed dead in a gold mine in Rongo, Migori County.
The five were part of 18 others who were trapped after a mine shaft, 750 feet, caved in on Tuesday afternoon.
According to George Otenga, Rongo Deputy County Commissioner, rescue efforts managed to pull out all the miners.
The first six to be pulled out were rushed to Rongo sub county hospital where three were treated and discharged while three others got referred to Migori county referral hospital owing to the magnitude of their injuries.
Otenga says the search operation was conducted by the locals and county team and by 10 pm, all the people in the mine were accounted for.
"It is unfortunate that we lost 5 of the miners. 13 miners were rescued alive, some are still in hospital while others were treated and discharged,' he said.
He says two miners died while receiving treatment at the hospital while three others were pulled out of the mine already dead.
Speaking to the press at his Rongo office on Wednesday, Otenga announced that government officers are heading to the mine file to assess the situation.
"Mining officers and officers from National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) are heading to the mining site," he said.
He called upon miners in the sub county to be cautious while at the mine fields noting that some sites are dangerous to operate on.
Otenga says the team heading to the ground will close mine fields, which do not conform to the government's safety standards.
"The officers will speak to the miners on the ground, mines which conform to the safety and precaution measures will be told on what to check out to avert such fatalities," he said.
The Commissioner further told the miners who have not joined or formed groups to do so to help them in acquiring government licenses to operate.
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