The number of victims buried in the aftermath of Wednesday's mine collapse in the Metuchira region, Gondola district, Manica province, has risen to four.

According to a report in "Noticias", in addition to the bodies, three miners were rescued alive from the same pit and suffered minor injuries, so the search for survivors continues to be intense.

Yesterday, the search and rescue work focused on just one artisanal mining tunnel where the three bodies were found and removed, with another 11 tunnels still to go.

The director of the Manica Provincial Infrastructure Service, Silva Manuel, said that the operations would continue in order to rescue more miners.

Quoted in the same publication, Manuel said that the aim is to reach every point in the mine to ensure that all the trapped victims are rescued.

Once the rescue operations are complete, the government intends to close the mine in order to reorganize and license the mining activity in the region, so that it can be carried out safely.

According to the source, the incident was caused by the precariousness of the methods used by the miners, which led to the landslide.

Image DR