Indonesia Gold Mine Collapse: Dozens Buried By Landslide, Rescuers Searching For Survivors

At least 60 people were feared buried by a landslide at an unlicensed goldmine in Indonesia’s North Sulawesi province, the national disaster agency said late Tuesday. According to reports, at least three people were dead and at least 15 were rescued so far.

“It is estimated that as many as 60 people are buried under landslide and rock material,” the agency’s statement said, quoting a local emergency response official. Rescue operations were underway and the crew scrambled through the rubble to find survivors. Police, search and rescue agency workers, military and Indonesian Red Cross personnel were involved in the rescue effort, authorities said.

"We are able to detect that many of them are still alive because we can hear their voices, as there are some places where air is getting in and out and there are gaps in the mud," Abdul Muin Paputungan of Indonesia's disaster agency told Reuters.

A spokesman for the agency said the mine collapsed Tuesday evening "due to unstable land and numerous mining shafts."

Informal mining operations are common in Indonesia.

This is a developing story.