Two confirmed dead after galamsey pit collapses at Sefwi Datano

Two people have died after a galamsey pit collapsed on them at Sefwi Datano in the Bodi District of the Western North Region.

The victims, identified as Kwaku Charles and Nana Dibi, are believed to be in their early thirties.

The two were reportedly mining for gold with another person at a site where they usually worked when the pit collapsed, trapping them underground. The third person is currently unaccounted for.

Residents and other rescuers rushed to the scene to retrieve the trapped miners.

An excavator was brought in to assist with the operation, but the machine reportedly severed the head of one of the victims before the bodies were recovered.

Speaking to 3news about the incident, the Unit Committee Member for Datano, Joseph Debrah, said he received a distress call that two people had been trapped in a galamsey pit.

He said he informed community leaders, who mobilised some of the youth to help with the rescue operation. The police in Bodi were also notified and joined efforts to retrieve the bodies.

The bodies were subsequently conveyed to the Juaboso Government Hospital mortuary for preservation and further investigation.

The incident has left the Sefwi Datano community mourning as efforts continue to establish the whereabouts of the third person who was reportedly at the mining site when the pit collapsed.