At least three people have been killed and an estimated 50 remain missing after a landslide at a jade mine in the remote Hpakant area of Kachin state, Myanmar on 22 December.

Many were swept into a lake below by the landslide of mining waste, prompting a desperate search by volunteers and workers aboard rubber boats. The missing are feared dead.

Deadly landslides and other accidents are common in Hpakant, the centre of Myanmar's secretive jade industry. In a landslide last weekend, media reported at least six people were killed. In July 2020, more than 170 people died in one of the worst disasters in Hpakant after mining waste also collapsed into a lake.

Myanmar produces 90% of the world's jade. 

Source: Reuters