Two men have died after being covered by soil in a deep pit where they were extracting gold at Namizimu Forest Reserve in Mangochi.
The two are Issah Salad and Matola Bakali and they both came from Chioko village in Traditional Authority Makanjira in Mangochi district.
The accident occurred at Ntiule village, Traditional authority Makanjira in Mangochi district.
Inspector Rodrick Maida, Public Relations Officer for Mangochi police station, said the two died in the process of extracting gold after soil fell into the pit and covered them.
“According to preliminary investigations, Issah and Matola left their home to extract gold in Namizimu forest reserve in which they started digging the soil in a deep pit. In the process, the soil fell upon them and completely covered them,” said Maida.
He added that officers from Makanjira Police with assistance from Villagers dug out dead bodies.
Autopsy conducted at the Makanjira Health Facility revealed that death was due to suffocation.
