Central African Republic: Cameroonians among several killed in mining pit landslide.

According to reports, hundreds of persons were digging the open pit in search of gold, when a huge mass of soil overhead collapsed down the sloppy pit and buried several persons alive. 

Local sources said a few other persons who saw the mass of ground falling, escaped for their lives.

In an interview granted the Cameroon Radio Television, CRTV, yesterday, the Governor of the East Region, Gregoire Mvongo, said the incident did not happen on Cameroonian territory.

The administrator noted that Zamboye, where it occurred, is across the border on the CAR side, separated by the River Kadey. 

The administrator explained that there is also another Zamboye on the Cameroonian side of the border. The Kadey River, he said, runs through the border. 

This, he stated, means there is no room for confusion as to where the catastrophe happened. He said it happened at about 2p.m, crediting his declaration to information cross-checked with reliable sources.

Gregoire Mvongo admitted that some compatriots were at the scene of the landslide. The Governor said authorities as at yesterday, had engaged their peers in CAR to handle the situation. He confirmed that between three and four compatriots died in the tragedy.

“…the incident occurred in the Central African Republic. But we have information that many Cameroonians were at the location…,” the Governor added. 

He also disclosed that measures are underway to repatriate the corpses of Cameroonians who died in the incident for decent interment. He also stated that the East Region administration has mobilised to address any form of need for assistance to compatriots in need.

“…we have put a security system in place to prevent any threat to public order disorder,” Gregoire Mvongo noted.

The civil administrator insisted that the Cameroonian authorities remain in permanent contact with CAR officials to handle the situation.

Plans underway to repatriate corpses, injured victims 

In a release issued yesterday, the Minister of Communication and Government Spokesperson, Rene Emmanuel Sadi, regretted the incident. He said measures are underway to repatriate the corpses of compatriots who died in the course of the incident. 

The member of government said appropriate arrangements are also being made by local authorities to facilitate the reception and medical care of injured persons who might be transferred back home. 

He also said relevant authorities are mobilised to continue with the identification of victims and to monitor the situation on both sides of the border. 

Rene Sadi also said measures are being taken to address any breach of public order in the administrative unit. 

East elite monitoring situation

Meantime, the leader of the Platform for the Development of the East Region, who doubles as  Minister of Public Service and Administrative Reforms, Joseph Le, issued a statement yesterday about the Zamboye incident. Joseph Le corroborated Governor Mvongo on what exactly transpired.

He said the Platform remains open to working with competent public authorities to address any emergencies linked to the landslide.

The East Region elite called for calm. He reassured that administrative authorities have taken measures to address any concerns and ensure people around the area on the Cameroonian border are out of any danger.

But how many people actually died?

As at yesterday, the exact number of persons killed in the open pit landslide was still being disputed. While authorities made estimates of Cameroonians killed in the mishap, figures on the totality of causalities yet to be made known.

CAR officials had also not commented on the incident, as we went to press Wednesday. 

However, other accounts emerged yesterday, putting the number of deaths at 107.

The same reports indicated that the search for more bodies buried under the ground was still advancing. The French language correspondent for BBC Africa, Jean Charles Biyo’o Ella, released an account late Tuesday, putting the number of bodies pulled from the ground at 107.

Biyo’o, in his report, had quoted the Mayor of Garoua-Boulai, in Cameroon, Adamou Abdon, as having given him the figures. Biyo’o did not also rule out the search for other bodies.

Zamboye not new to tragedy

The CAR border locality of Zamboye, persons familiar with the terrain have said, is not new to such accidents. At least 23 persons are reported to have died in another landslide at an open mining pit in the locality of Be-Mbari, within the same administrative unit of Tuesday’s happenstance. 

CAR authorities are said to have been battling for years to address safety concerns and the disrespect of standards in mining operations around the area.

It is reported that in August 2025, CAR authorities alongside officers, serving under the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission, MINUSCA, visited mining pits in Zamboye to assess the risk locals were exposed to. The field mission is said to have been staged after similar mining pit accidents.

Chaotic mining in East

Despite the clarification of authorities that Tuesday’s incident happened in CAR, the East Region is known for the chaos that reigns in the mining sector.

Locals and investors continue to battle in search for gold. Open mining pits have repeatedly been identified as death traps. 

Several persons have died in the administrative unit in such dangerous mining sites, while searching for rare earth minerals.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3884 of Thursday August 20, 2026