Bodies of 4 trapped miners recovered in Burkina Faso

By Aurore Bonny

DOUALA, Cameroon (AA) - The bodies of four miners were recovered on Wednesday in the West African nation of Burkina Faso more than a month after a subterranean flood left eight workers missing, authorities announced on Wednesday.

"After 39 days of intense searching, the lifeless bodies of four miners have been found," government spokesman Wendkouni Joel Lionel Bilgo said in an official note on the efforts in the Perkoa mine, located in the western province of Sanguie.

He added that search operations continue for the remaining four miners, who have been missing since April 16.

Six of the miners were Burkinabe, while one was Tanzanian and another Zambian.

They were trapped deep in the area's only zinc mine, which is 90% owned by the Trevali Mining Corporation, a global mining company based in Vancouver, Canada, and 10% by the state.

Trevali said in a statement on Wednesday that its senior representatives "are in regular contact with the families of the eight workers and will continue to offer their support."

It added that it "continues to work alongside the Burkinabe authorities and is grateful for the search assistance received from them and the Burkina Faso mining community."