Kenya has a small mining sector compared to its neighbours.

However despite rapid growth in recent years, much of it is unregulated with miners having to deal with poor safety measures and organised crime groups.

“The information we have is that there were around 20 miners at the time it collapsed but eight have been rescued,” said Daniel Makumbu, a county police commander in the Kakamega region told AFP.

“The search and rescue operation is ongoing and we are urging the crowd to stay away to make the work easier and avoid endangering themselves because this area is very fragile,” he added.

The incident occurred late on Monday.

A report published by Africa’s Institute for Security Studies said legal small-scale mining, mostly focused on gold, contributed US$224 million to the Kenyan economy in 2022 – around half its mining output – and employed around 250,000 people.

At least five people died when heavy rains caused an unauthorised gold mine to collapse in May 2024 in the Hillo area near the border with Ethiopia.