Dozens die each year in landslides caused by jade mining, a poorly regulated industry rife with corruption.Police initially described how a “mud lake” buried 54 miners – all feared dead – while they were sleeping, although they said yesterday that the men had been working a night shift at the time.
By nightfall on Tuesday, only three bodies had been recovered, a police officer from Hpakant township, who asked not to be named, said.“Searching in the mud is difficult – it’s not like soil,” he added.Myanmar Thura Gems director Hla Soe Oo said by phone that the company was “helping the families identify the victims’ bodies”.
The open jade mines in Hpakant township have turned the landscape into a vast moonscape-like terrain of barren hills and vast valleys of dirt scoured by companies for the precious gems. Impoverished ethnic communities often scavenge the terrain for scraps left behind by big firms – and are frequently the main victims of landslides.A major collapse in November 2015 left more than 100 dead, while in July of last year, the bodies of 23 victims were recovered after a search hampered by heavy monsoon rains.
The jade industry is largely driven by the insatiable demand from neighbouring China, where the translucent green gemstone has long been prized. — AFP