3 Dead, 14 Hurt in Ghana Gold Mine Accident
Three people have died and 14 others required medical treatment after inhaling toxic fumes at a gold mine in Ghana, the company running the operation said on Friday.
"We can confirm that three people have died out of the inhalation of toxic fumes from our underground operations," said a spokesman for the Shaanxi Mining Company Ltd, Maxwell Wooma.
The firm, a subsidiary of the China Gold Resources Company Ltd, said the three were among 17 people who had to be rescued and taken to hospital in Bolgatanga, in the Upper East Region.
"Unfortunately upon arrival (at hospital) we lost two people yesterday (Thursday) and early this morning (Friday) one passed on," Wooma added.
An investigation has been launched but the company said those affected were two groups of underground "cleaners" tasked with cleaning rock particles after blasting in the mine.
"This is the first time we have suffered this," said Wooma.
"We adhere strictly to the mining regulations and safety standards for the five to six years that we have been operating and developing this mine."
Ghana is Africa's second largest gold producer and exports of the yellow metal, along with other minerals and oil, helped boost the country's economic growth in recent years until a recent slide.
The industry involves a number of major players in the sector but small-scale, illegal gold mining has been a persistent problem and accidents frequent.
In 2010, at least 45 people were killed when an illegal gold mine collapsed after heavy rains while in November 2009, at least 18 people, including 14 women, were killed.
In 2013, Ghana's government said it expelled 4,700 illegal miners, most of them Chinese, attracted to the country by prospecting.
This is the third time since the first one happened in June, 2013 with three young men killed. The incident on Thursday,23 April, 2015 happened when the Chinese Shaanxi mining company in Talensi District, did underground operation (blasting) without precautionary measures. seventeen (17)of the employees who, out of unawareness, inhaled the toxic substance. The management had refused to send them to hospital but gave them Ten Ghana Cedis (10.00) each. One of the company management staff, gave the victims some drugs and confidently confused them with the efficacy of the drugs. The victims did not seek medical attention until they went home. On Friday, five of them were in critical condition and rushed to clinics and hospital by their friends and relatives. Four have died, one in critical condition. The Shaanxi mining company with their propagandist machinery, quickly invited some media and started distorting the facts.