At least five dead in illegal gold mine collapse in Kenya

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

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

Kenyan television station NTV reported that two injured miners were taken to the hospital on Saturday morning.

Local media stated that the extraction of ore took place because the mine owners had closed it in March 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 heavy rains, which have plagued Kenya since March, caused the mine collapse.

According to local media, more than 300 people have died as a result of floods and landslides. The Kenyan government reported that the heavy rains and flooding displaced over 278,000 Kenyans, affecting 82,000 households. Damage is estimated at 4 billion Kenyan shillings (30 million dollars).