At least 11 miners died and 30 were injured when a shaft at an informal gold mine collapsed late Saturday in Oni, a remote area of Sudan's northeastern Red Sea state. The collapse is the second deadly mine disaster in Sudan this week after a western mine collapse killed about 82 people. Informal mining, weak safety oversight and the ongoing war between the Sudanese military and the RSF have increased risks; UN-commissioned experts warn that gold smuggling from conflict zones helps finance armed groups.
Deadly Shaft Collapse at Informal Gold Mine in Northeastern Sudan Kills 11, Injures 30
This is a locator map for Sudan with its capital, Khartoum. (AP Photo)
A shaft at an informal gold mine in northeastern Sudan collapsed late Saturday, killing at least 11 miners and injuring 30 others, state officials said as rescue teams continued to search the rubble for anyone still missing.
This incident is the second deadly collapse at a small-scale gold operation in Sudan within a week, following a separate disaster in the west that claimed roughly 82 lives.
What Happened
Witnesses and local workers said the collapse occurred in Oni, a remote locality in the northeastern Red Sea state, and began during the night. An employee of the state-owned Sudanese Mineral Resources Company, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the press, said 11 bodies had been recovered by Sunday and 30 people had been pulled from the wreckage. Searches for additional missing miners were ongoing.
“The collapse started suddenly during the night,” said Abdalhay Kharif Abakar, who worked in the area.
Official Response
In a written statement, the state mineral company offered condolences to the families of the deceased but provided few further details about the casualties. Local rescue teams, many of them volunteers, remained at the site working to clear debris and locate survivors.
Wider Context
Sudan has thousands of artisanal and informal mines where safety protocols are often absent. Fatal collapses are not uncommon at these operations. The country plunged into full-scale war in April 2023 after fighting broke out between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese military. Monitoring group the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) reports at least 59,000 deaths linked to the conflict, a figure aid organizations say likely undercounts the true toll.
United Nations–commissioned experts have warned that large quantities of gold are being smuggled out of Sudan to help finance the RSF, which controls many of the country’s gold-producing areas in Darfur and Kordofan. Observers say that the combination of conflict, weak oversight and economic pressure has driven many miners into informal, hazardous operations.
Rescue and recovery efforts at the Oni site continue amid concerns about further shaft instabilities and the limited resources available to local teams.
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