Three dead, dozens buried in Indonesia gold mine collapse

Three people have been found dead while 14 others were pulled from the rubble alive. More than three dozen may still be trapped at the site in the Bolaang Mongondow region of North Sulawesi.

"Dozens of people were mining for gold at this location when suddenly beams and supporting boards broke due to unstable soil conditions," said disaster agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho.

The effort to save survivors at the remote site on Sulawesi Island was hampered by steep terrain and unstable soil conditions after the collapse triggered a landslide on Tuesday evening.

"We still have hope. When we called them they still responded from down there, asking for help," local disaster agency official Abdul Muin Paputungan said.

Rescuers are attempting to get water to those trapped inside the mine, who are believed to be suffering from lacerations and broken bones. The rescue mission is unable to use machinery due to the steep site.

"There are a lot of challenges because the rocks that fell are in a very dangerous position," Paputungan said, "we're trying to be extra careful".

Ground conditions at the mine were unstable due to the large number of holes dug by the miners, officials said.

The region saw five miners die in December in an illegal gold mind accident. The mineral-rich Southeast Asian nation has many unlicensed mining sites and safety regulations are often ignored.

Environmentalists called on local officials to enforce regulations and safety measures in response to the accident.

"We predicted this was going to happen," said Theo Runtuwene, a local director for the Indonesian Forum for the Environment.

"The area is mountainous and (miners) dug holes there, which is extremely risky... There are dozens of sites in North Sulawesi where the ground is very unstable, especially during the rainy season”.

In 2016, 11 miners died after a mudslide engulfed an illegal gold mine in Sumatra's Jambi province.

A year before, 12 people were killed when a shaft collapsed after they tunnelled into a disused gold mine on Java island.

Agencies contributed to this report.

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