Colombia gold mine collapse kills 13 worker
At least 13 workers have been killed and another seven injured in a landslide at an open pit gold mine in southwestern Colombia, in one of the country’s latest deadly mining accidents.
The incident happened on Wednesday night when a slope collapse at the mine located in a rural area of Policarpa, in Nariño department, according to local authorities. Firefighters, residents and emergency crews using excavators searched the site until about 2 a.m. Thursday, when officials said all those reported missing had been found.
Authorities initially received reports of an explosion, but later determined that a landslide had caused the disaster, according to Radio Caracol. The Nariño governor’s office has not said whether the gold operation held mining permits or was operating illegally, an important distinction in a region where authorities regularly target unauthorized mines linked to armed groups and environmental damage.
Witnesses said four of those killed belonged to the same Indigenous family. Residents said about 50 people, most of them members of the Quillacinga Indigenous group, regularly worked at the mine near Policarpa.
Informal mining
Deadly accidents are a recurring risk in Colombia’s mining sector, particularly at unlicensed operations where workers extract precious metals without formal oversight or safety controls. An estimated 200,000 to 400,000 people participate in artisanal mining across the country, with many families relying on sales of gold and gemstones for income.
Illegal gold production presents a broader challenge. Criminal organizations, including armed groups and drug cartels, have used gold mining as a source of revenue, moving production through intermediaries and disguising its origins with apparently legitimate documentation before it enters international supply chains.
The risks extend beyond mine sites. A recent New York Times investigation found that Colombian gold linked to criminal networks entered the supply chain of the US Mint, which under federal law must use US-mined gold for its investor-grade coins.
Previous investigations and enforcement actions have also traced Latin American gold, including supplies originating in Peru and Ecuador, to North American refiners and traders after illicit material was mixed with legitimate production or exported using falsified documents.