Africa-Press. More than 200 people were killed in the collapse of the Rubaya coltan mine in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a Reuters official confirmed on Friday.
The collapse occurred on Wednesday, and the exact number of casualties remained unclear until Friday evening.
The Rubaya mine produces about 15% of the world’s coltan, which is processed into tantalum, a heat-resistant metal increasingly in demand by manufacturers of mobile phones, computers, space components, and gas turbines.
An official in the Democratic Republic of Congo said that “more than 200 people were victims of this landslide, including miners, as well as children and women in the market,” noting that some people were rescued but suffered serious injuries.
He added that the confirmed death toll had reached at least 227.
The mine site—where local residents work in artisanal digging for a few dollars a day—is under the control of the “M23” rebel movement.
Eastern DR Congo is considered the country’s region most afflicted by a humanitarian crisis, particularly due to decades of conflict and the M23 movement—backed by Rwanda—controlling vast areas of land.
