The NEMA team, in the company of officers from the county
directorate of environment and natural resources did an assessment which
established that the sites were dangerous for the
miners to continue extracting the gold ores.
NEMA officer Brenda Obura said the affected mines are
characterized by cracks and could be dangerous for the people to go down and do
the excavation.
In the face of the ongoing heavy rainfall being experienced
in the region, she said the mines can easily cave in and bury those underneath.
The officer noted that they do not want the recurrence of a
disaster like what happened last year.
“In Chambiti area, Central Maragoli ward, we lost three
artisanal miners who collapsed at the site and suffocated to death,” said
Obura.
Elsewhere in Kakamega in March, 10,2025, a miner was killed
after he and others ventured into a shaft to mine gold at a site in Matindi
Village.
Two others were seriously injured in the Saturday, March 8
incident, police said. It was the second weekend that a death incident was reported
at the goldmine site.
According to police, three people had ventured into the shaft in Kakamega for the excavation of gold.
The shaft is adjacent to River Yala, it was then that it collapsed, trapping them.
Two were rescued alive, while the other died on the spot, police said.
The injured individuals were rushed to the Hospital for medical treatment, while the body of the deceased was taken to the Morgue for a postmortem examination.
