When most Nigerians hear about mining disasters, they often imagine collapsing tunnels, exploding dynamite, or landslides swallowing workers whole. These are visible tragedies. They leave behind twisted earth, broken machinery and scenes of chaos. But there is another kind of mining disaster – one that arrives without noise, without warning and without mercy.
It is the silent killer that struck recently in Kampani Zurak community, in Wase Local Government Area of Plateau State, where 37 miners reportedly died, with 20 others hospitalised, after inhaling toxic gases trapped within an underground mining pit. There was no dramatic collapse. No explosion. No flood. The victims simply entered the mine in search of livelihood and never returned alive.
Their deaths have once again exposed one of the most neglected aspects of Nigeria’s rapidly expanding mining sector: underground gas hazards. Unlike a mine collapse or an explosion that leaves visible evidence of destruction, a gas-related mining accident is particularly insidious. Workers may feel dizzy, weak, or confused before suddenly collapsing. In confined underground spaces, death can come within minutes.
As the nation seeks to diversify its economy away from oil and position solid minerals as the next frontier of economic growth, the tragedy in Wase should force our policymakers to confront an uncomfortable truth. Nigeria may be investing in mining, but it is not investing enough in mining safety. The result is a ticking time bomb beneath our feet. Eyewitnesses said there was a similar incident last year, which killed two miners.
Among the many dangers associated with underground mining, toxic gases rank among the deadliest. Carbon monoxide is particularly notorious. It is colourless, odourless and tasteless. A miner can breathe it for several minutes without realising that the gas is steadily replacing oxygen in the bloodstream. Victims may first experience headaches, dizziness, and confusion. Soon after, they collapsed. Since then, rescue has often been difficult.
Other underground gases such as hydrogen sulphide, sulphur dioxide, and methane pose equally serious threats. Some are poisonous; others are explosive. Still others displace oxygen, creating conditions where miners simply suffocate. In many parts of the world, sophisticated sensors continuously monitor underground air quality. Alarms sound immediately when gas concentrations rise above safe levels.
But in many Nigerian mining sites, especially within the artisanal and small-scale mining subsector, such technologies are either unavailable or ignored. This is where danger lies. A miner cannot see toxic gas; neither can he smell it, nor hear it. And often, he cannot escape it.
Wase Is not an isolated incident. The deaths in Wase should not be viewed as a one-off tragedy. Rather, they should be seen as a symptom of deeper structural weaknesses within Nigeria’s mining governance framework. Across Plateau, Zamfara, Nasarawa, Niger, Kaduna and several other mineral-rich states, thousands of abandoned mining pits dot the landscape.
Many of these sites date back several decades. Some contain unstable tunnels. Some are contaminated with heavy metals. Others accumulate toxic gases due to geological conditions and poor ventilation. Yet countless abandoned pits remain unfenced, unmarked and largely forgotten, like the one that killed commuters in Ebonyi State in 2021.
For nearby communities, these abandoned sites often become magnets for informal miners seeking survival amid economic hardship. Without technical knowledge or protective equipment, they descend into spaces that even professional mining engineers would approach with caution. The result is predictable.
Whenever a mining disaster occurs, public debate often focuses on assigning blame. However, the Wase tragedy reveals a chain of responsibility involving multiple actors. The first responsibility belongs to mining operators. Any company granted the privilege of extracting mineral resources also assumes the obligation to protect human life. This includes conducting risk assessments, securing dangerous locations, maintaining ventilation systems, monitoring air quality, and preventing unauthorised access to hazardous areas.
The second responsibility lies with regulators. Nigeria possesses laws, regulations and institutional frameworks governing mining activities. The challenge is enforcement. Inspections must be regular. Safety audits must be rigorous. Violations must attract consequences. Regulatory agencies cannot limit their role in issuing licences while neglecting continuous monitoring. A regulatory system that reacts only after fatalities occur is already failing.
The third responsibility belongs to state governments. Mining may be constitutionally regulated by the Federal Government, but state authorities remain custodians of public welfare within their territories. Governors, environmental protection agencies, emergency management authorities, and local government councils should maintain close surveillance of hazardous sites within their jurisdictions.
Waiting for Abuja to solve every mining problem is neither realistic nor responsible. For instance, I covered the lead poisoning disaster in the mining sites of Bagega, Zamfara State in 2011. Before the Federal Government showed up, 400 children were already dead from lead poisoning. It took another two years to mobilize funds for the remediation of the community.
The fourth responsibility belongs to host communities. Poverty can push people into dangerous occupations. Yet communities must understand that mining is a highly technical activity. The risks are not always visible. Traditional knowledge alone cannot detect toxic gases; the same way it will not identify particulate matter. In Zamfara, women were taking the gold ore home to process with their cooking utensils without knowing that they were literally serving their families death portions for dinner.
Community leaders, youth associations, local organisations and media should actively collaborate with government agencies to promote mining safety awareness. One of the most overlooked professional groups in Nigeria’s mining safety architecture is environmental health officers. Traditionally associated with sanitation inspections and disease control, environmental health officers possess skills that are highly relevant to mining environments.
Their expertise includes environmental risk assessment, hazard identification, public health surveillance, community sensitisation and environmental monitoring. These competencies are urgently needed in mining communities. Environmental health officers can serve as frontline sentinels, identifying hazardous sites before they become disaster zones.
They can educate communities about the dangers of abandoned mines. They can collaborate with geological and mining experts to conduct environmental impact assessments. They can establish grassroots reporting mechanisms that alert authorities to emerging risks. Most importantly, they already possess an extensive presence at the local government level.
In a country where regulatory resources are stretched thin, this existing network represents an underutilized asset. Government should therefore integrate environmental health officers into mining safety frameworks, especially in areas with high concentrations of artisanal mining activities. Doing so would strengthen both prevention and emergency response.
Perhaps the most important lesson from Wase is the need for a comprehensive national abandoned mine rehabilitation programme. Nigeria cannot manage what it has not mapped. The first step should be the creation of a nationwide inventory of abandoned mining sites. Every abandoned mine should be documented. Its location should be recorded. Its hazards should be assessed. Its risk level should be classified.
Following this exercise, high-risk locations should be secured through fencing, warning signs, and regular monitoring. In particularly dangerous cases, permanent closure measures should be implemented. Community awareness campaigns should accompany these interventions. People must understand that abandoned mines are not merely empty holes in the ground. They are environmental hazards.
Our ambition to become a global mining destination is commendable. The country’s mineral resources offer enormous opportunities for industrialisation, employment generation, and foreign exchange earnings. However, sustainable mining cannot be built on preventable deaths. The measure of a successful mining sector is not simply how many tonnes of minerals are extracted. It is also how effectively workers are protected. It is how responsibly communities are treated. It is how seriously environmental risks are managed. And it is how determined regulators are to enforce standards. The true wealth beneath Nigeria’s soil is not worth more than the lives of Nigerians.
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