At least 30 people have died in a semi-industrial copper mine in Congo after a bridge collapsed.

The disaster left around 49 people dead and another 20 hospitalised in critical condition.

Congo’s Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining Support and Guidance Service said the collapse was ’caused by panic, reportedly triggered by gunfire from military personnel securing the site.’

They also claimed miners then ‘piled on top of each other, causing injuries and death.’

WTopNews reported that the ‘mine has long been at the center of a dispute between wildcat miners. a cooperative meant to organise operations and the site’s legal operators.’

Artisanal mining in Congo employs an estimated 1.5 million to 2 million people and indirectly supports more than 10 million others.

An independent investigati

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