List of mining disasters in the Democratic Republic of the Congo explained

The following is a list of mining disasters in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Especially in informal artisanal mines, deadly mining accidents are commonplace.^[1] Despite the frequency of mining deaths, many incidents are not documented.

• March 2001 – coltan mine 30 miles northwest of Goma in North Kivu province – at least 70 killed in a collapse.^[2]
• January 8, 2002 – artisanal coltan mine in Masisi Territory in North Kivu province – about 30 killed in a collapse.^[3]
• February 21, 2003 – MIBA mine at Mbuji-Mayi in Kasai Oriental province – 10 or 25 miners die under disputed circumstances.^[4]
• October 2004 – artisanal diamond mine near Kapangla village in Kasai Occidental province – 10 killed in a collapse.
• February 21, 2005 – artisanal diamond mine near Kapangla village in Kasai Occidental province – at least 20 killed in a collapse.^[5]
• January 5, 2007 – artisanal diamond mine near Tshikapa in Kasaï Province – at least 15 killed in a collapse.^[6]
• April 3, 2007 – MIBA mine at Bakwanga in Kasai Oriental province – at least 7 artisanal miners killed by collapse.^[7]
• August 19, 2009 – artisanal diamond mine near Mbuji-Mayi in Kasai Oriental province – 18 killed in a collapse.^[8]
• August 15, 2012 – artisanal gold mine near Pangoyi in Orientale Province – at least 60 killed in a mine shaft collapse.^[9]
• May 2013 – Rubaya mines near Rubaya in North Kivu – at least 20 killed in a mine collapse,^[10] or more than 100 artisanal miners killed in a landside.^[11]
• December 26, 2014 – artisanal mine near Kolwezi in Katanga Province – 15 suffocate (no landslide).^[12]
• September 7, 2015 – artisanal cobalt mine near the village of Mbaya/Mabaya 80 km south of Lubumbashi in Katanga province – 15 miners killed in a cave-in, and an additional 18 killed in similar incidents in the same area the week before.^{[13] [14]}
• March 8, 2016 – KOV mine near Kolwezi in Lualaba Province – 7 employees killed in a collapse.
• November 2016 – Tenke Fungurume Mine in Lualaba Province – 13 artisanal miners killed in a collapse.^[15]
• December 2016 – Makungu mine gold mine in Fizi Territory in South Kivu – at least 20 killed in a collapse.^[16]
• October 2018 – artisanal gold mine in Fizi Territory in South Kivu province – at least 37 killed in a collapse.^[17]
• March 26, 2019 – Niyabibwe artisanal cassiterite mine 100 km north of Bukavu in South Kivu province – 14 killed in a collapse.^[18]
• June 27, 2019 – KOV mine near Kolwezi in Lualaba Province – 43 artisanal miners killed in a collapse.^[19]
• October 2, 2019 – artisanal gold mine near Kampene in Maniema Province – at least 22 killed in a collapse.^{[20] [21]}
• December 14, 2019 – Ndiyo gold mine in Ituri Province – 24 killed in a landslide.^[22]
• September 2020 – artisanal mines in Kasongo territory in Maniema Province – 3 killed in a collapse near Mukulungu, and 9 killed in a landside in another village in the same territory the week before.^[23]
• September 11, 2020 – artisanal gold mine near Kamituga in South Kivu province – at least 50 killed when trapped in a collapsed mine shaft.^{[24] [25] [26]}
• May 22, 2021 – artisanal gold mine near Bondo in Bas-Uélé province – 12 killed in a landslide.^{[27] [28]}
• July 2021 – mining at the Catoca diamond mine in Angola contaminates the Kasai River, killing 12 people living downstream in the DRC and sickening about 4,500 people.^[29]
• June 7, 2022 – artisanal diamond mine near Tshikapa in Kasaï Province – at least 40 killed in a tunnel collapse.
• November 2022 – artisanal gold mine near Ruabaya in North Kivu province – at least 13 killed.^[30]
• December 2022 – artisanal gold mines in Fizi Territory in South Kivu – at least 10 killed in mudslides across two sites.^[31]
• March 25, 2023 - artisanal gold mine in South Kivu - a collapse in an artisanal gold mine. Nine miners are rescued, and video of their escape is widely shared on social media, sometimes falsely associated with lithium mining.^{[32] [33] [34]}
• May 6, 2023 - illicit artisanal diamond mine near Diboko village in Kasaï Province - a dozen miners killed in a collapse.^{[35] [36]}
• May 8, 2023 - Songambele artisanal coltan mine, located within the Rubaya mines in North Kivu - a provisional count of six deaths with as many as 100 miners trapped.^{[37] [38] [39]}

See also

• List of coal mining accidents in China
• List of mining disasters in Lancashire
• List of mining disasters in Poland

Notes and References

1. Web site: Nsapu . Esther . Deaths Are All Too Common, Compensation All Too Rare for Artisanal Miners in DRC . Global Press Journal . 2016-11-27 . 2023-01-21.
2. Web site: MINE COLLAPSE KILLS 70 IN CONGO . Orlando Sentinel . 2001-03-14 . 2023-01-22.
3. Web site: 30 die in DRC mine collapse . Engineering News . 2002-01-17 . 2023-01-22.
4. Web site: Government, NGOs open inquiry into Mbuji-Mayi mining deaths . The New Humanitarian . 2003-02-28 . 2023-10-02.
5. Web site: 20 die in diamond mine collapse . The New Humanitarian . 2005-03-16 . 2023-01-22.
6. Web site: 2007-01-09. DRC Diamond mine collapses: 15 dead . DiamondWorld.Net . 2023-01-21.
7. Web site: Miners killed in DRC diamond-mine collapse . The Mail & Guardian . 2007-04-04 . 2023-01-22.
8. Web site: Congo diamond mine collapse kills 18 people . Hindustan Times . 2009-08-20 . 2023-01-28.
9. Web site: At Least 60 Die in DRC Mine Collapse - Democratic Republic of the Congo . ReliefWeb . 2012-08-16 . 2023-01-21.
10. Web site: DR Congo mine collapse 'kills at least 20' . BBC News . 2013-05-17 . 2023-01-22.
11. Web site: Conflict Dynamics and Community Resilience in Masisi Territory. United States Agency for International Development. 2019-08-21. 2023-01-07.
12. Web site: 15 suffocate in illegal DRC mine . News24 . 2014-12-28 . 2023-01-28.
13. Web site: Rescuers search for survivors of DRC mine collapse . eNCA . 2015-09-09 . 2023-01-22.
14. Web site: 13 Miners killed in DRC Landslide :: Uganda Radionetwork . Uganda Radionetwork . 2015-09-09 . 2023-01-22.
15. Web site: Landslide kills 13 as diggers invade Freeport mine in Congo: governor . Reuters . 2016-11-21 . 2023-01-28.
16. Web site: At least 20 dead in DR Congo gold mine collapse - Nigeria and World News . The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News . 2016-12-18 . 2023-01-21.
17. Web site: More than 30 killed in DR Congo gold mine collapse . The East African . 2018-10-11 . 2023-01-22.
18. Web site: 14 dead in DR Congo mine collapse . EWN . 2019-03-27 . 2023-01-22.
19. Web site: Alhassan . Rayyan . 43 illegal miners dead in Congo copper mine collapse . Daily Nigerian . 2019-06-28 . 2023-01-22.
20. Web site: DR Congo gold mine collapse toll rises to 21 . The Citizen . 2019-10-03 . 2023-01-21.
21. Web site: Adebayo . Bukola . At least 22 killed in Congo gold mine collapse, authorities say . CNN . 2019-10-03 . 2023-01-21.
22. Web site: Agence France-Presse . 24 Killed in DR Congo Gold Mine Collapse . VOA . 2019-12-15 . 2023-01-21.
23. Web site: DR Congo mine collapse: 3 killed, 1 missing . TurkishPress . 2020-09-04 . 2023-01-22.
24. Web site: At least 50 feared dead in DR Congo mine collapse - News . Al Jazeera . 2020-09-12 . 2023-01-21.
25. Web site: DR Congo: More than 50 killed in gold mine collapse – DW – 09/12/2020 . dw.com . 2020-09-12 . 2023-01-21.
26. Web site: Kyala . Crispin . Survivor recalls horror after Congo mine collapse . Reuters . 2020-09-14 . 2023-01-21.
27. Web site: Rani . Archana . Collapse of makeshift gold mine in DRC claims lives of 12 miners . Mining Technology . 2021-05-25 . 2023-01-21.
28. Web site: 12 clandestine miners die in Democratic Republic of Congo gold mine accident - UN radio . News24 . 2021-05-24 . 2023-01-21.
29. Web site: Waste From Mine in Angola Kills 12 Downstream in Congo, Minister Says . The New York Times . 2021-09-03 . 2023-01-21.
30. Web site: Presse . AFP - Agence France . Deadly Floods, Landslides In Eastern DR Congo . Barron's . 2022-11-19 . 2023-01-21.
31. Web site: Presse . AFP - Agence France . Mudslides Kill At Least 10 Miners In Eastern DR Congo . Barron's . 2022-12-31 . 2023-01-21.
32. Web site: Miners in Congo escape from collapsed gold mine . Reuters via Yahoo News . 2023-03-27 . 2023-04-09.
33. Web site: DR Congo man uses bare hands to rescue trapped gold miners . BBC News . 2023-03-27 . 2023-04-09.
34. Web site: False: A video of a rescue operation at a gold mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo has been falsely shared as being the result of "slave labor for lithium" . . 2023-04-05 . 2023-04-09.
35. Web site: Presse . AFP - Agence France . DR Congo Diamond Mine Collapse Kills Six . Barron's . 2023-05-07 . 2023-05-10.
36. Web site: Kasai: a dozen dead in the collapse of a mining site in Diboko – acpcongo . acpcongo – ACP Congo . 2023-05-07 . fr . 2023-05-10.
37. Web site: Tragedy strikes: Deadly landslide buries 130 miners at coltan mine in Congo. Yahoo News . KameraOne . 2023-05-10.
38. Web site: RDC : une centaine de creuseurs artisanaux ensevelis après un éboulement à Rubaya . Radio Okapi . 2023-05-09 . fr . 2023-05-10.
39. Web site: Nord-Kivu : éboulement mortel dans une mine artisanale de coltan à Rubaya – acpcongo . acpcongo – ACP Congo . 2023-05-08 . fr . 2023-05-10.