Landslide at gold mine in Indonesia kills 15, with 25 missing

By Anadolu staff

At least 15 people were killed and 25 others are missing when a landslide hit a gold mine in Indonesia, authorities said Friday.

The incident took place on Thursday when villagers were digging for grains of gold in the Solok district of the West Sumatra province, local broadcaster Kompas reported.

The West Sumatra Regional Disaster Management Agency said they already dispatched their team to the site of the accident and recovered 15 dead bodies.

"So far our team also pulled out three people alive," said Ilham Wahab, spokesperson for the agency.

Wahab added that there was no rain at the time of accident and so far they do not know the cause of landslide.

In July, at least 23 people died and 35 were left missing in a massive landslide at a traditional gold mine in Indonesia’s remote Bone Bolango district in the Gorontalo province.

*Writing by Islamuddin Sajid