Eighteen gold miners have been confirmed dead and another 30 are still trapped one day after an illegal mine collapsed in western Ghana, police said on Tuesday.Attempts to rescue the 30 men still trapped in an abandoned mineshaft at Nsuapim, about 400km west of the capital, Accra, are being hampered by a lack of earth-moving equipment, they said.
Area police Commander Daniel Sampana said he has sought help from one of the big mining companies in the area, Bogoso Gold, which has offered excavators. Bogoso is a subsidiary of Canada's Golden Star Resources.
Illegal gold mining has been a source of concern for both the Ghanaian government and the big mining companies.
Illegal miners often take over abandoned mineshafts and galleries in order to dig for gold there on a small scale. Left without maintenance for years, these structures sometimes cave in on the miners.
Note:
These are analysis of the blogger---Isaac TETTEH
Pit Collapse: - This happens basically because the earth ideally should be in a state of equilibrium. Meaning, every excavation in an in-situ rock, will seek to adjust to keep the earth in its equilibrium state.
There are factors that make the acquisition of this perfect state faster, the major bring disturbance of either the wall or foot rock.
Factors that cause these disturbances include ground vibration from a neighboring pit, flooding among a host of others.
To prevent these from happening, Legal mining companies undertake proper stope support, professional de-watering, prevention of rock acid drainage etc.
Illegal mining is a crime under the current laws of Ghana. Laws have been put in place to integrate “Galamsay operators” into following “the rules of engagement”. Many of them have not heeded this call. The reasons are that they feel they will not make as much money as fast as they are making now when their operations are regulated.
This has exposed them to even greater risk since many Legal mining activities are ongoing in the Western region.
I hope the authorities at the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) will intensify its outreach programmes in these deprived districts so as to clear all doubts in the minds of these “wanna-be miners”.
These are analysis of the blogger---Isaac TETTEH
Pit Collapse: - This happens basically because the earth ideally should be in a state of equilibrium. Meaning, every excavation in an in-situ rock, will seek to adjust to keep the earth in its equilibrium state.
There are factors that make the acquisition of this perfect state faster, the major bring disturbance of either the wall or foot rock.
Factors that cause these disturbances include ground vibration from a neighboring pit, flooding among a host of others.
To prevent these from happening, Legal mining companies undertake proper stope support, professional de-watering, prevention of rock acid drainage etc.
Illegal mining is a crime under the current laws of Ghana. Laws have been put in place to integrate “Galamsay operators” into following “the rules of engagement”. Many of them have not heeded this call. The reasons are that they feel they will not make as much money as fast as they are making now when their operations are regulated.
This has exposed them to even greater risk since many Legal mining activities are ongoing in the Western region.
I hope the authorities at the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) will intensify its outreach programmes in these deprived districts so as to clear all doubts in the minds of these “wanna-be miners”.
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