Geologist dies in gold pit
2009-04-05 14:36
Georgetown - A gold-mining pit in Guyana's Amazon jungle caved in, killing a French geologist who was extracting soil samples for a company seeking to mine the precious metal, police said Saturday.
Guy Gois, 56, "was taking soil samples from an excavated pit during heavy rainfall and it is reported that the pit caved in and trapped him underneath," said Guyana police spokesperson Ivelaw Whittaker.
The accident occured Friday at Konawaruk, some 200km southwest of Georgetown, Whittaker said.
Gois was rushed to a state-run hospital at Mahdia where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
Guyana's forested, mountainous and riverine Amazon region is rich in gold, diamonds and uranium, attracting several North American and European companies in recent years.
- AFP