12 March 2024
It is initially reported that more than 20 people are missing along with backhoes and machinery due to a mud tank breaching in a jade mining block in Manamaw, Hpakant Township, at 4:00 a.m. today, March 12th.
“Locals have reported that a mud pond collapsed at 4:00 a.m. this morning in Manamaw, near Pharkant, Kachin State. An eyewitness said that at least 23 company employees may have died due to the breaching of the mud tank and about 9 excavators and 7 backhoes were buried in the mud,” wrote a local with the account name Zaw Moe Htet on social media.
In the initial stage, 4 people were rescued and only one dead body was recovered, while the remaining 20 people were searched, but due to the condition of the collapsed mud pond, they could not be searched thoroughly because it was too late, and it is also reported that they are likely to have died. MT News has contacted Kachin State government officials regarding this incident and will continue to report further information.
Image. An old picture of the large mud ponds in Pharkant (Photo – Zaw Moe Htet & CJ)
