At least ten fatalities, 18 injured and dozens missing is the disastrous result so far of a landslide at a small gold mine in Indonesia, local newspaper Kompas reported on Monday.
The National Disaster Mitigation Agency said the incident was triggered by ongoing heavy rain across the Gorontalo province on the island of Sulawesi. Search and rescue operations are currently underway, with about 43 people still unaccounted for, the agency said to Kompas.
According to data from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), up to 300,000 people are employed in artisanal or small-scale gold mining in Indonesia. Many of these workers, 30% of which are women, operate without official employment, licenses, or proper equipment, exposing themselves to significant risks in a country where floods and earthquakes are frequent occurrences.
