'We can't find the bodies buried underwater ... so we are just picking up the dead bodies that float,' say police. FMTNews
Myanmar fire services personnel carrying out a victim from the open jade mine.
The disaster struck after heavy rainfall pounded the open-cast mines, close to the Chinese border in Kachin state, where billions of dollars of jade is believed to be scoured each year from bare hillsides. “By 7.15pm, 162 bodies were found,” said the department, adding that 54 people were injured and sent to nearby hospitals.
The workers were scavenging for gemstones on the sharp mountainous terrain in Hpakant township, where furrows from earlier excavations had already loosened the earth. The mines are mired in secrecy, although environmental watchdog Global Witness alleges operators are linked to former junta figures, the military elite, and their cronies.
The mine where Thursday’s accident happened belongs to the Yadanar Kyay company, according to the military’s official news site.
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