According to reports from the location, which is around 80 kilometers from Calabar, the mine, which is several feet deep, collapsed on Wednesday, killing six miners while others fled.

Mrs. Ada Charles Egwu, Chairman of Biase Local Government Area, who visited the area, expressed concern over the activities of illegal miners in the area and urged security personnel to increase monitoring on the areas to prevent further disasters.

“The purpose of this visit is to assess the activities of the illegal miners and also see for myself the collapsed site that took the lives of six young men so early in the year,” she said.

The Council Chairman said she was saddened by the death of the youths whose lives had been cut short while struggling to make ends meet and also described the tragic death as unfortunate.

“My heart goes out to their families on behalf of my family and the good people of Biase Local Government Area over this pathetic development,” she added.

She promised to form a panel to investigate the situation and take appropriate steps to prevent such tragedies.

She urged security forces to secure the area and arrest anyone who disobeyed the order to stay away from the mine.