Two brothers, identified as Zubairu Ibrahim and Sadiq Ibrahim, have died over the weekend after a mine collapsed in Kakaki village, located in the Paikoro local government area of Niger State.
The tragic incident followed three previous mine collapses in the Shiroro and Paikoro areas of the state in recent months.
The deceased brothers, aged 20 and 25, were said to have left home without informing their parents that they were heading to the mine to dig for solid minerals.
The father of the deceased brothers, Mallam Zubairu Ibrahim, said the family initially assumed the young men were out with friends but when they did not return, the family learned that the brothers had gone to the mine site, hoping to find gold or other valuable minerals.
He said he sent community members to search for his sons, and tragically, their bodies were found buried beneath the collapsed soil at the riverbank.
While speaking with officials from the state Ministry of Mineral Resources who paid a condolence and fact-finding visit to the village, Ibrahim lamented how he could cope with life after burying two sons in one day.
The team from the Ministry of Mineral Resources was led by the Permanent Secretary, Alhaji Yunusa Mohammed Nahauni and directors, the Miners Association State Chapter Caretaker Chairman, as well as the Nigeria Union of Mines Workers.
The Permanent Secretary lamented that the death was avoidable if the community had abided with the Governor’s order suspending mining in the state.
He stressed that the directive suspending mining in the state is still in force as the ministry will continue to crack down on illegal mining operations, warning that anyone found violating the regulations would face legal consequences.
Nahauni, who expressed the government’s condolences, reiterated the need to determine the cause of the accident, urging the community to inform the ministry whenever they discover any mineral elements in their vicinity to receive proper guidance.