At least four people have been confirmed dead and another critically injured following the collapse of a gold mine in the Lami Nyeusi area of West Pokot County.
The incident occurred on Tuesday, December 17, around 5 a.m., while more than ten miners were extracting gold ores from the strip pit.
Among the deceased were three men and a woman. The injured individual reportedly sustained severe injuries to their limbs.
The bodies of the victims were transported to the Kapenguria County Hospital mortuary, while the injured person was also taken to the same hospital for treatment.
West Pokot County Police Commander Nelson Omwenga confirmed the tragedy, noting that the death toll could rise, as more individuals remained trapped under the rubble.
A rescue operation led by General Service Unit (GSU) officers is still ongoing, with efforts focused on retrieving all the victims from the collapsed mine.
Omwenga urged the families of those affected to be patient as the rescue team continued its work.
This tragedy comes just a week after a similar incident in Marsabit County, where six people were killed, and ten others injured when an illegal gold mine collapsed in the Dadel area.
A police report indicated that the victims had illegally entered the mine, which had been closed for several months by the government due to security concerns.
The Hillo gold mine in Dabel, which was shut down earlier this year, had been a site of concern for authorities.
In March, former Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki had designated it as one of the areas affected by mining-related fatalities.
In July, two police officers were killed when more than 3,000 people illegally entered the site and clashed with officers.
Despite attempts by the police to disperse the crowd, the locals managed to overpower them, using stones and crude weapons to chase the officers away.
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