State media reports indicate that a gold mine collapse in Zimbabwe has resulted in the tragic loss of six lives, with 15 individuals remaining trapped underground. Deputy mines minister Polite Kambamura disclosed that 34 miners were caught in the collapse, with 13 managing to escape.
Rescue efforts are currently underway at the Beyhose mine, located in the gold-rich town of Chegutu, approximately 100 kilometers west of Harare. As of now, there has been no response from the police or the mines ministry regarding the incident.
Zimbabwe has a history of mine collapses, often involving artisanal miners, in a nation abundant in gold, coal, diamonds, and lithium, a mineral in high demand for electric car batteries.
The country’s economic struggles have driven people, including young children, to search for valuable deposits in mineral-rich national parks, abandoned mines, rivers, and towns—a rare economic activity amid industry closures, currency crises, and high unemployment rates over the past two decades. Critics attribute the economic decline to mismanagement and corruption, while the government attributes it to sanctions imposed by the United States over alleged human rights violations.