Three people, including two women, have died after an illegal mining pit collapsed on them at Odumase-Santenso in the Asante Akyem Central Municipality of the Ashanti Region.
The incident occurred around 4 p.m. on Friday, August 7, 2026, according to the area’s assembly member, Isaac Kyei Andoh.
He said community members alerted him shortly after the pit caved in, trapping the victims underground.
Rescue efforts were launched immediately, but the bodies of the deceased, identified as two women and a man between the ages of 21 and 25, were not recovered until between 6:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. that evening. Two of the victims, both women, were residents of Bomeriso.
Mr. Andoh explained that the victims were engaged in illegal small-scale mining, commonly known as galamsey, and had been digging deep pits using makeshift equipment to extract gold when the walls of the pit gave way.
Customary rites were performed at the scene before the bodies were conveyed to the local mortuary.
