Rescue effort called off for survivors as jade mine
YANGON: Rescuers yesterday called off the search at a jade mine in war-torn northern Myanmar that was struck by a landslide this week after all the missing people were accounted for, police said.
Four bodies were pulled from the rubble at the mine in Hpakant town, Kachin state, which was engulfed by a wall of mud on Tuesday evening.
The landslide is believed to have occurred when debris heaped beside the mine collapsed after it was loosened by heavy rains.
“We stopped our search and rescue today as we found all missing persons,” Police Major Naing Win of Hpakant police station said.
The number dead could have been considerably higher had the landslide hit earlier in the day, he added.
Instead it struck around 7.05pm (7.05pm Thai time) after most miners had returned home to eat dinner.
“About eight tents selling food were there with very few customers inside when the landslide occurred.
“That’s why there were fewer casualties,” Major Naing Win said.
Up to 90% of the world’s jadeite-the most sought-after type of jade-is mined in Hpakant, feeding a vast appetite for the green stone in Asia and particularly China, where it is believed to ward off evil spirits and improve health.
Accidents and landslide at Myanmar’s jade mines are commonplace.
The famously murky trade in the resource-rich nation has seen lower sales in recent years in part because of an upsurge in fighting in Kachin .AFP