The illegal miners were said to be prospecting for gold in an abandoned pit, an area some Chinese nationals are said to have earlier mined and left uncovered.
The deceased have been identified as Kwaku Noah, Issahaku Osman, Mohammed Ibrahim, Salifu, and Aliu Waliu.
John Kwaku Alhassan, the North East Regional Director of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), confirmed the incident.
He said NADMO proceeded to the scene of the incident, and found the men died beneath the rubbles.
He said “The pit was mined by some Chinese nationals but it has since been abandoned, so due to the recent flood, the illegal miners went there to pump out the water and prospect for gold and were trapped” adding that a team of NADMO officials has since been dispatched to conduct an investigation.
The practice of galamsey activities contributes tremendously to the local economy of the communities within which the practice is conducted.
The number of galamseyers in Ghana is unknown but believed to be from 20,000 to 50,000, including thousands from China.
The major cause of galamsey is unemployment among the youth in Ghana.
Galamsey damages the land and water supply and following the destruction, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo said he will do all within his power to put an end to the menace.
