BANGKOK (AP) — More than a dozen rescue and charity groups used excavation machinery on Monday to recover bodies following a massive blast from stored mining explosives in northeastern Myanmar.
The explosion occurred Sunday at noon in Kaungtup village, Namhkam township in Shan State near the Chinese border.
The Ta’ang National Liberation Army, the ethnic rebel group that controls the area, said in a statement released on Monday evening that the death toll from the blast has reached 43, including seven children. Previous estimates from rescue workers had ranged from 38 to 45.
The group said 112 people, including 25 children, were injured, with 37 in critical condition, raising concerns that the number of fatalities could increase.
“Rescue operations and the compilation of casualty figures were still underway,” said the statement.
Determining the exact death toll has been complicated because several bodies were blown apart by the force of the explosion.
Many of Myanmar’s resource-rich areas, where most mining operations have been largely unregulated, are controlled by different armed militias engaged in sporadic fighting against the central government to seek greater autonomy. Accidents, such as deadly landslides, are fairly common.
TNLA said Sunday's blast involved gelignite used in local mining and stone quarrying. Although gelignite is commonly used, it becomes highly unstable over time when improperly stored.
Residents of the 200-household village reported that they were never told explosives were being kept there.
An investigation into the specific cause of the explosion is underway, the TNLA said.
The incident has cast a spotlight on Myanmar’s lucrative but largely unregulated mineral industry and Chinese investment in the country's extractive industries.
Two local residents told The Associated Press on Monday that mines producing raw materials for silicon metal — a key industrial substance used in semiconductors, solar panels, and aluminum alloys — are located in mountainous areas about 15 kilometers (10 miles) southwest of Namhkam town.
The residents, who spoke on condition of anonymity to protect their safety, said the mines are operated jointly by the TNLA and Chinese businessmen and are inaccessible to most residents. The claim couldn’t be independently verified by the AP.
Myanmar’s mining industry is a major global provider of rare earth elements, copper, tin, and precious gems, especially jade and rubies, and is the main supplier to China, where the extracted materials are processed and refined.
China maintains a complex role as a top ally to Myanmar’s military-backed government while also fostering relations with the ethnic minority groups.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian in Beijing expressed deep condolences and confirmed that a Chinese national injured in the blast is receiving medical treatment. Beijing has pledged assistance in handling the aftermath.
The TNLA, part of the Three Brotherhood Alliance, seized control of the Namhkam area in late 2023 during a major offensive against the military government. This conflict is part of the broader turmoil following the February 2021 military coup, which ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi and triggered widespread armed resistance.
While the TNLA signed a China-mediated ceasefire with the military in late 2023, peace in the region is shaky and extraction of minerals and gemstones provides critical income for both the central government and the rebel groups fighting against it.
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Associated Press writer Anton Delgado in Bangkok and Greater China News Director Eduardo Castillo contributed to this report.
