Kigali - At least 70 miners in the Democratic Republic of Congo were killed over the weekend after several tunnels in their ore mine collapsed, officials in the rebel-held town of Goma said yesterday.
Officials said the accident at the remote mine, located about 50 km (30 miles) north-west of Goma on the Rwandan border, occurred on Saturday. But details only came to light yesterday. Mr Jean Pierre Kisanga, a spokesman for the rebel Congolese Rally for Democracy, said the victims were working in several tunnels which collapsed, possibly due to heavy rains that have been pounding the area.