Illegal gold mine collapse in Kenya's Marsabit kills five, dozens missing

At least five miners have died, and several others are missing after the roof collapsed in a gold mine operating illegally in Marsabit County, located in northern Kenya, local services reported. The disaster was caused by months of heavy rains.

According to local police information, at least eight workers were present at the mine during the incident.

Kenyan television station NTV reported that two injured miners were hospitalized on Saturday morning (ET).

Local media stated that the extraction of ore took place because the mine owners closed it in March of this year after several people from local communities were killed in clashes over access to the area. The enterprise is located near the border with Ethiopia.

The cause of the mine collapse was heavy rains that have plagued Kenya since March.

According to local media, more than 300 people have died as a result of floods and landslides. According to the Kenyan government, the heavy rains and flooding have displaced over 278,000 Kenyans, affecting 82,000 households. Damage is estimated at 4 billion Kenyan shillings (around 40 million Canadian dollars).