82 missing after an illegal gold mine collapses in Sudan

A severe landslide at the Al-Sara illegal gold mine complex in Sudan's West Kordofan province has claimed the lives of at least 70 to 82 miners. Several mines in this informally operated complex collapsed one after another, leaving a large number of others trapped under the soil and missing, while nearly 50 have been injured.

In this remote area, which is under the control of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), rescue operations for those trapped in the rubble are still ongoing.

This gold mine, spread over an area of about one kilometer in the Fuja region, consisted of a group of unsafe mines dug in very loose sandy soil. These mines, dug very close to each other and more than 30 meters deep, had no wooden supports or minimal safety measures. With the collapse of one mine, a chain of associated mines sank into the soil one after another, and a significant number of workers were engaged in the mines at the time of the accident.

Even after the accident, no specialized rescue teams or heavy machinery have reached the site. Local residents and fellow miners have attempted to remove soil throughout the night using simple hand-digging tools, and only one private forklift was available at the location. The repeated collapse of loose sandy soil has severely hampered access to those trapped in the rubble, and hopes of finding anyone alive are rapidly diminishing.

There are conflicting reports regarding the time of the accident, with some miners stating that the collapse began on the evening of Tuesday, September 15. However, local administrative officials indicate that after one mine collapsed on Sunday, September 13, it spread to other mines by Tuesday. Due to the ongoing wartime situation between the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which controls this area, and the Sudanese state army, obtaining an official death toll or confirmed photographs from the site has been extremely difficult.

Amidst the ongoing civil war in Sudan and the severe collapse of its economy, a large number of young people have turned to such risky informal gold mines. Sudan, one of Africa's largest gold producers, derives 80 to 90 percent of its total gold production from such unsafe private mines. Similar mine collapses were reported in 2021 and 2023, as well as in early 2026, and this Al-Sara mine accident is considered the deadliest mining disaster recorded in recent history.