Officials in Suriname say seven men, who were illegally digging for gold, have died in a landslide at a gold mine.
Police in the former Dutch colony said two men were injured Saturday in the accident, while three men escaped the collapse.
Authorities say the dead miners were mainly from the Maroon community, descendants of African slaves brought to the South American country in the 17th and 18th centuries who escaped into the interior.
Surgold, the owner of the Suriname mine, is a joint venture between U.S.-based multinationals Alcoa and Newmont. The company says the men were not working for the company and were in an open pit mining area without permission.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and AFP.
