Five people, all employees of African Minerals Petroleum, a mining company based in Kamonyi District were on Saturday rescued from a mining concession located in Rukoma Sector, Kamonyi District, police has said

The miners had gone missing since Saturday and were rescued on Sunday around midday, according to police.

Police identified the survivors as; Emmanuel Nsengimana 36, Azarias Usabyeyezu 19, Emmanuel Dusabimana 30, Emmanuel Murekezi 47 and Jean Paul Dushimimana 27.

Police Spokesperson, Commissioner of Police, John Bosco Kabera, said the survivors went into the mining concession on December 29, at around 10am for their routine mining activities only to be covered by a cliff which collapsed.

"Some of the miners who were at the time preoccupied with other mining related activities outside the concession called for Police intervention after realising their colleagues were in serious trouble,” Kabera said. 

The Fire and Rescue Brigade supported Kamonyi District Police Unit together with other security organs and area residents all intervened and immediately started rescue operations, which Kabera said took hours before all the miners could be helped out of the concession.

The Police Spokesperson commended other security organs and residents who worked round the clock to ensure a successful rescue exercise.

CP Kabera challenged all stakeholders in the mining industry to always put safety measures by ensuring that their employees have all the necessary personal protection equipment to avoid loss of lives stressing that the life of a citizen comes first.

He further said that, the five survivors were immediately rushed to Remera Rukoma Hospital for medical care.

At press time, the affected were reported to be in sound health and that they could be discharged from the Hospital very soon, according to police.

The residents were excited and thanked Police for the quick and successful intervention.

Police called for more cooperation through timely information sharing to facilitate quick intervention, emphasising that crime reporting is essential in crime prevention.

Official figures indicate that by June this year alone, more than 30 people had been killed by mining accidents while in 2017 the number of fatalities from mining-related accidents was at 27.

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