Dozens feared dead after second landslide in Myanmar jade mine

Dozens of people are feared dead after a landslide hit a jade mine in Myanmar, the second such incident in just over a month. The victims were buried in rubble in Hpakant in the northern Kachin State. Rescue workers were searching for survivors and had begun to recover bodies, officials said. “We heard about 50 people were buried in the collapsed dump and four or five bodies were found this morning,” Sai Lon, who works at a jade mining company said.

We start searching and rescuing people this morning, and found five bodies. According to witnesses, about 50 people are still missing

Tint Swe Myint, administrator of Hpakant town

In November, a massive landslide in the same mountainous area in Kachin State killed 114 people. Dozens are feared to have been killed in small accidents at the mining site throughout the year. The victims are mostly migrant workers who pick through the piles of waste left by large-scale industrial mining companies hoping to find a previously missed chunk of jade. Much of the jade mined in Hpakant is believed to be smuggled to neighbouring China, where the green stone is highly prized and is widely believed to bring wealth and longevity.

Asia-Pacific jade mine