At least seven people died, and two were wounded when a mine collapsed in western Colombia in the early hours of Wednesday morning, Colombian media reported.
According to government secretary Cruz Palacio, the accident occured around 1:30AM at the Ulloa gold mine in the municipiality of Arato-Yuto, in the department of Choco.
“We could only remove two people alive, the others died instantly,” the government official explained.
The two that were wounded were immediately transfered to a local hospital where they are recovering from the trauma.
The mayor’s office is investigating if the mine has the permits required for mining in the area.