Illegal mining activities otherwise known as ‘galamsey’, has been on the rise in the Juaboso District of the Western North Region, with four persons losing their lives in some of their abandoned pits.
Within a month, people between the ages of two and 19 have succumb to galamsey pits in the district.
About two weeks ago, two people died in an abandoned galamsey pit at Juaboso, the district capital, with the recent tragedy happening at Sehwi Abrokofe, a farming community, also in the Juaboso District.
Two young men, Seth Nyame also known as Kwabena Bour, 19, and Oliver Ntaadu also known as Junior, 15, died after falling into an abandoned galamsey pit.
OnuaOnline’s sources have revealed that the 19-year-old Kwabena Bour attempted rescuing Oliver from the pit but sadly drowned with him.
The community authorities had to perform several rituals including slaughtering of fowl and pouring libation before the victims’ bodies were retrieved from the pit.
However, they were all found dead. It took the authorities two days to retrieve the bodies from the pit.
Land, water bodies, forest reserves among other natural resources have been destroyed by these illegal miners.
Illegal miners are destroying a huge portion of the resources in the area, claiming many lives as well in the process.
Meanwhile, leadership is liaising with the security services in the district to regulate the activities of these miners.
Wa – Upper West: Five Burkinabes jailed 100 years for ‘galamsey’
By Emmanuel Sowah
